That's Amore
by piacere
Summary: Updated Jan 1! Lizzie, Gordo, and some others go to Italy. What was supposed to be a romantic vacation turns out to be a drama-fest with surprises. That is what love is all about, right? lg
1. Uno

SUMMARY: LIZZIE, GORDO, MIRANDA, AND ETHAN GO TO ITALY (BUT NOT ROME) AS YOUNG ADULTS. LIZZIE AND GORDO ARE A COUPLE AND MIRANDA AND ETHAN ARE PAIRED. Rated pg-13 for later chapters  
  
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE.  
  
"You guys," Miranda said at the table in the restaurant to her friends, Lizzie, Gordo, and Ethan. "I have a great idea."  
  
"What would that be?" Gordo asked.  
  
"Well," Miranda started, "To celebrate our first year out of college and with great jobs now, Ethan and I were talking and we decided we wanted to go to Italy."  
  
"That is a great idea, Miranda!" Lizzie said, "We are going back to Rome? That is so cool!"  
  
"Actually, Lizzie," Ethan started, "Miranda and I were thinking like another part of Italy, like Sicily."  
  
Miranda nodded her head. "Yeah, my boss has a house there and invited us to go there."  
  
"Oh!" Lizzie said, "That is a great idea! I have heard great things about that place!"  
  
"Yeah, that is where the mafia originated," Ethan said.  
  
"Yeah, and he said we could use it for a month if we wanted to," Miranda added.  
  
Lizzie looked at Gordo. "I think we should go. What do you think, Gordo?"  
  
Gordo smiled, "Well, I think it is a great idea. What about work, though? I have flexibility being a director and Lizzie has the summer off. What about you two?" He asked Ethan and Miranda.  
  
"Well, he is my boss, and my job also has flexibility and Ethan is working extra hours before we leave."  
  
"Good. When are we going?"  
  
"In a few weeks, after summer is official."  
  
"A few weeks?! That isn't very long!" Lizzie said.  
  
"Well, I just got offered the house a few days ago. Besides, you have plenty of time! Believe me!"  
  
Lizzie rolled her eyes and yawned. "Alright, I have to say I am pretty tired and I think I am going to go to sleep. Are you ready, Gordo?"  
  
"Yeah, Liz. I am pretty beat myself. Goodnight, guys!" Gordo and Lizzie got up and payed for their dinner, and then went to their apartment.  
  
Gordo opened the apartment door for Lizzie and Lizzie immediately dragged herself to the sofa and dropped herself there. Gordo smiled and took his jacket off and joined Lizzie on the couch.  
  
"Had a rough day, Liz?" Gordo asked, half smiling.  
  
"Yeah. I survived my first year of teaching kindergarten. I can't believe this school year is over. I have taught seventeen kids how to read this year. Can you believe that?"  
  
"Yeah. Liz, you are so talented, those kids were lucky to have you," Gordo said as he put his arm around her and kissed her on the cheek.  
  
"Thanks," Lizzie said, "You know, this year really does deserve a celebration. A lot has happened in this year."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Well, I got my own apartment for starters," Lizzie said.  
  
"That you share with me," Gordo added.  
  
"Not according to my mom," Lizzie said.  
  
"Yeah, well your mom doesn't know a lot of stuff that happens between us, and I would prefer to keep it that way. Wouldn't you?" Gordo said as he leaned over and started kissing Lizzie's neck.  
  
However, Lizzie was so tired, she said, "Gordo, not tonight. I am so tired right now, I really need to sleep."  
  
Gordo pulled back, "I understand. Do you want me to help you get to bed?"  
  
"No," Lizzie said, "I think I can handle it. Can you just help pull me up?"  
  
Gordo pulled Lizzie up from the sofa and took her to bed. There, she slept peacefully. 


	2. Due

DISCLAIMER:I DON'T OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE.  
  
Chapter Two  
  
A Few Weeks Later. . . . . . .  
  
At the Airport  
  
Gordo, Lizzie, Miranda and Ethan were sitting at the airport, waiting to board the plane.  
  
"Wow, Gordo, I cannot believe we are going to Italy again. I guess that Trevi fountain was right about returning to Italy," Lizzie said.  
  
"Uh, Lizzie? The Trevi fountain says you will come back to ROME. We aren't going to Rome. We are going to Sicily," Gordo said.  
  
"Oh well," Lizzie said as she nudged Gordo playfully, "Close enough."  
  
"Yeah, try telling that to the five million Sicilians."  
  
"Fine. So, are you excited, Gordo, or what?"  
  
"I think this will be a lot of fun. You and me. . .in a romantic country. Who knows what will happen," Gordo said as he took Lizzie's hand and held it. Lizzie blushed.  
  
"Miranda and Ethan will be there, too, you know," Lizzie said, looking at Miranda and Ethan who were just coming back from buying a drink in the airport.  
  
"Who?" Gordo said as he kissed Lizzie's hand.  
  
Just then, Miranda and Ethan sat down next to them, and Lizzie pulled her hand way from Gordo.  
  
"We saw what you two were doing, so there is no use in trying to hide it," Miranda said, "Besides, once we are in Italy, I am sure there will be plenty more time to be alone and do whatever you want."  
  
Ethan looked at Miranda and blurted, "Really?"  
  
Lizzie, Gordo, and Miranda laughed at Ethan's comment.  
  
"Hey," Miranda said, "Unlike you guys, I have never been to Italy. What are the Italians like?"  
  
"They speak Italian," Gordo said.  
  
"Gee, Gordo, that helps a lot. Thanks," Miranda said as she rolled her eyes.  
  
"Well, 'tis true, my amico," Gordo said.  
  
"Amoco? Isn't that a gas station?" Ethan asked.  
  
Gordo rolled his eyes, "Yeah, Ethan, I am calling Miranda my 'gas station'."  
  
"Why? Is that some sort of metaphor or something?" Ethan asked.  
  
"Can I have a little help here, Lizzie? Miranda? Anyone?" Gordo said.  
  
"Can't help you here, Gordo. You started it, and now you have to finish it," Lizzie said.  
  
"Yeah, sorry, Gordo. What is an 'amico' anyway?" Miranda asked.  
  
Gordo sighed, " 'Amico' means 'friend' in Italian," Gordo said.  
  
"Ohhhhh," everyone else said in unison.  
  
Then, the all were called onto the airplane. Unfortunately, Ethan and Miranda were placed in a totally separate section of the plane than Lizzie and Gordo. Lizzie and Gordo settled in and waited for take off.  
  
"Gordo?" Lizzie said, once the plane took off.  
  
"Yes, my love?" Gordo said, not looking up from his magazine.  
  
"What do you think we will do once we get to Italy?"  
  
"I don't know. Listen to Dean Martin and drink a lot of red wine," he suggested jokingly.  
  
"Well, you know what I mean, but I mean, what do you think it will be like?"  
  
"I don't know, Liz. I do know, however, that I will be eating a lot of pizza and gelato, Italian's finest cuisine," he said.  
  
Lizzie decided to give up on that conversation, and started reading her latest novel, and soon fell asleep. When she woke up, lunch was being served, and the in-flight movie, "The Abyss," was playing. Lizzie ate the chicken lunch and watched a little bit of the movie. After getting bored with the movie, she started writing in a notebook that had recently become her travel journal.  
  
"What are you doing?" Gordo asked, in between chewing on his pork plate and looking at the notebook.  
  
"Oh, I am just writing down a list of things to do to entertain yourself on a plane," Lizzie said.  
  
"Oh, that is easy," Gordo said, "you talk."  
  
"Oh really?" Lizzie asked.  
  
Gordo nodded his head.  
  
"And who do you suggest I talk with, considering my boyfriend is being especially antisocial on this flight," Lizzie said.  
  
"Hmm. I can empathize with you," Gordo said.  
  
"How?"  
  
"Well, I have this beautiful girlfriend, and when she is not reading something, she is sleeping."  
  
"Liar! You started it!" Lizzie said as he hit him with her notebook.  
  
"Me? How? You were the one that stopped talking to me at the beginning."  
  
"That is only because you were not taking my questions seriously," Lizzie said.  
  
"Well, they would have gotten more serious with time."  
  
"Whatever, Gordo," Lizzie said as she pulled her seat back as far as it would go and covered her body with the provided blanket and closed her eyes. She heard Gordo sigh and smiled because she knew he was sighing out of amusement, and not out of sadness. She placed her hand on his leg as she tried to fall asleep yet again. Gordo took her hand and held it while he tried to fall asleep.  
  
After another eight hours, they finally arrived at the Sicilian airport. After they got off the plane, they re-met up with Ethan and Miranda, who were waiting for them  
  
After they met up, they realized, in Sicily, it was quite early in the morning, like seven in the morning, and in their home, it was ten the night before. They decided right away that they would get something to eat, as the food in the airplane wasn't very filling.  
  
They decided to go to the local café and their options for drink were: té, caffè, birra, espresso, limonata, and cioccolato. Somewhat of cognates. Hmm, and then there where various things at the bakery. They ordered what they wanted, including Ethan with his birra, or beer, with the explanation that in his mind, it was about time for a beer.  
  
After breakfast, they were pretty jet lagged and decided to go ahead and head for the house and sleep for a little longer. 


	3. Tre

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Okay, in other news, I just bought a copy of an Italian- English dictionary. Yay! I am learning Italian, and I am teaching myself, so I am really excited! Other than that, thank you for the support. Also, I now have it set so I can have people anonymously review.  
  
Chapter Three  
  
They found the house and the house was amazing. It felt very Sicilian. Sicily was a very beautiful place. As soon as they came to the house, they claimed rooms; Lizzie and Gordo in a bedroom on the second floor and Ethan and Miranda took the bedroom on the first floor. Both bedrooms were the same size, which was pretty small, but at the same time, they felt very intimate. Lizzie and Gordo crashed onto their bed, which took up most of the floor space. Their room also had a balcony. Lizzie fell asleep on Gordo's chest.  
  
They didn't wake up until one in the afternoon, which was five in the morning in California. Lizzie woke up first, to the sound of a moped outside. She looked at Gordo, who was still sleeping. She decided to take a shower, so she went to the bathroom with her shampoo and stuff.  
  
Although the shower had little water pressure, it was a nice refresher, and by the time she came out of the bathroom in her towel, Gordo was awake, and he saw Lizzie and smiled, "So you couldn't wait for me to take a shower with you, huh?"  
  
"Ha ha!" Lizzie said as she got dressed. Once she was dressed, she sat on the bed next to Gordo. "Fell better after sleeping some?"  
  
"A little. This time change is ridiculous," Gordo said.  
  
Lizzie nodded her head as she towel -dried her hair. "Has the Italian air hit you yet?"  
  
Gordo took a deep breath in as he propped himself up and faced Lizzie. "Not really, but give me an afternoon or two."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head and Gordo laughed. He took her hand and said, "Come here, you!" and pulled her into a kiss, but she pulled away.  
  
"Ugh, Gordo, brush your teeth. Your breath is horrible," Lizzie said.  
  
Gordo laughed as he slowly stood up. As he walked into the bathroom he said, "Boy, you sure do know how to ruin a mood." And closed the door behind him and Lizzie could hear the shower starting. She wondered what was on the agenda that day. Did they even have a set agenda here in Sicily? I mean, they were on vacation, so it nothing should be set in stone.  
  
Lizzie finished getting ready while Gordo showered. She was tying her tennis shoes when Gordo came out with a towel around his waist. "Going anywhere?" he asked when he saw what she was doing.  
  
"Yeah, well I thought I would walk around outside and see what is around us," she said.  
  
"Oh, that is a good idea," he said, as he got dressed.  
  
"Yeah, I thought so, and besides, it is so beautiful out there," she said.  
  
"Yeah, it is. While we are out there, we can get something to eat," Gordo said.  
  
"Yeah, I guess it is lunch time," Lizzie said as she stood up to make the bed. After Gordo was ready and the room looked neat, Lizzie and Gordo headed for downstairs. Miranda and Ethan still seemed to be asleep. Lizzie and Gordo left a note for them and then left.  
  
They started walking, and everything just seemed so ---Italian. The area they were staying was not very citified, and it didn't seem very modern, which might have added to the beauty of everything. There were clothes hanging from houses and the street was very narrow. It was almost like a Hollywood set, but it was reality.  
  
Lizzie and Gordo walked hand in hand as they passed the houses and streets and saw a few people. They watched the children play games outside and older people sitting outside and reading books and talking to each other.  
  
After walking for about fifteen minutes, they found a restaurant and sat down and ate pasta.  
  
"So, Lizzie," Gordo started, "This trip is going to be amazing, do you have any place you want to go?"  
  
"I don't know. I think we should just go with it. Sicily seems great, but I would love to see other parts of Italy."  
  
"Yeah, I was thinking we could take a boat to the mainland in Italy," Gordo said.  
  
"Yeah, and we can also go to the other big islands, Sardinia and Corsica," Lizzie said.  
  
"Ooh! Somebody has been doing their research," Gordo said.  
  
"Well, yeah. Also, I thought we could go to Napoli"  
  
"Napoli?" Gordo asked.  
  
"Yeah. Naples. Haven't you ever heard the song, 'That's Amore?'"  
  
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"  
  
"Um, hello? Ever listen to the lyrics? It starts, 'In Napoli . . .' and mentions the place a few times."  
  
"Oh," Gordo said. "What about Rome?"  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"Well, that is farther north, but maybe. It would be nice to see it again," Lizzie said.  
  
"What about Firenze?" Gordo asked, looking at his pocket travel guide, trying to stump Lizzie with her knowledge.  
  
"Florence? That is way north from here!" Lizzie said.  
  
"What about Torino?" Gordo said, "You know, where the Olympics were a few years ago?"  
  
"That is practically in France!" Lizzie said.  
  
"So? We can rent a car or something."  
  
"What about Miranda and Ethan?"  
  
"They can go with us."  
  
"But this is Miranda's trip. She has control over where we go," Lizzie pointed out.  
  
"They don't have to go with us. Hey, we can be like Lucy and Ricky and bike over to France."  
  
"Um, Gordo, they biked to Italy from France," Lizzie corrected.  
  
"Oh, you and your useless trivia," Gordo said.  
  
"Well, I guess you rubbed off on me," Lizzie said and they laughed, "Besides, you keep forgetting, I took a course on the Romance languages, and Italian is one of them."  
  
"Okay," Gordo said and they paid for their food and then started walking. "Seriously, Lizzie, I think we should think about traveling around all of Italy, and maybe going into France is not a bad idea."  
  
"Well, we will see, but for now, lets stay here and do what Miranda wants to do," Lizzie said.  
  
"Okay, but somehow, I don't think so will care, her being with Ethan and everything, maybe we will be doing them a favor," Gordo said and smiled.  
  
Lizzie hit him playfully, "We will see," Lizzie said and she kissed Gordo. 


	4. Quattro

DISCLAIMER:I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Sorry it has taken me a while to get used to summer. Aren't I posh? Anyway, things will soon be getting more hectic, because I will be traveling out of the country soon for a couple of weeks, but for now, while I have the time, I will write.  
  
Chapter Four  
  
By the time Lizzie and Gordo returned from their walk, Miranda and Ethan were awake and drinking coffee. "Have a nice walk?" Miranda asked when she saw them come in.  
  
"Yeah," Lizzie answered, "This place is really neat. I am looking forward to the next few weeks."  
  
"Me too," Gordo said.  
  
"Good," Miranda said. Lizzie noticed that Miranda was holding a pencil, and their was a note pad in front of her.  
  
"What are you writing down?"  
  
"Oh, I am making a grocery list. Have any requests? I figured we would probably end up eating a few meals in the house, so we better get some food. You want to come with me to the store, Lizzie?"  
  
"Sure. Do you know where it is located?"  
  
"Nah, not really, but I figure it couldn't hurt to explore the beautiful island of Sicily and enjoy the Sicilian culture," Miranda said.  
  
"Nope, couldn't hurt," Lizzie said, "Are Gordo and Ethan coming along for the ride?"  
  
"They can if they want to come. I mean it is shopping," Miranda said.  
  
"Yeah, but come on, we are shopping for food. If they don't come, they have to eat whatever we pick out," Lizzie said with a smile.  
  
"True, but speaking of ride, we need to figure out how to rent a car," Miranda said.  
  
"We are going to rent a car?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"Well, yeah," Miranda said, "We can't walk all the time."  
  
"Yeah, I guess. Do you think we should rent one or two cars?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"It is up to you guys to figure that out. Do ya'll plan on going on excursions outside of Sicily?" Miranda asked.  
  
Lizzie looked at Gordo and then back at Miranda, "Well, yeah, we were planning on going to the mainland at some point, and maybe Corsica or Sardinia. Anything is possible."  
  
"Maybe we should get two cars then. It would probably mean less problems in the long run."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head in agreement. "So while we are out, you want to get the cars as well?"  
  
"Sounds like a plan to me," Miranda said.  
  
"Me too," Gordo said.  
  
"Yeah, me three," Ethan said.  
  
The foursome left the house and found the grocery store after a few minutes. It was the opposite direction of the restaurant Lizzie and Gordo went to.  
  
After buying a large amount of food, they asked someone where they could go to rent a car. They dropped the groceries off at the house. They car place seemed like a long way away, so they took the bus. The place was near the airport, which made sense.  
  
They decided the two cars would be for the two couples, and each couple would be responsible for paying for their own car. Miranda and Ethan rented the cheapest thing on the lot, which was an old small car. Lizzie was going to go for cheaper, but Gordo insisted they get something that looked comfortable. The finally agreed on a blue medium sized car that was newer than Miranda and Ethan's. This way, if they were to go on trips, they might stay over night and have to drive a long way, and this car looked comfortable and was more spacious. They payed for the rentals and headed back to the house.  
  
Actually, Miranda and Ethan hadn't really eaten anything, so they decided to go to a restaurant and eat something. Gordo and Lizzie said they would eat something a home.  
  
After getting lost a few times, Gordo finally found his way back to the house. Once there, Lizzie went right upstairs and onto the balcony. "Man, this place is beautiful," Lizzie said to herself.  
  
Lizzie sat out there and watched the people below and all the other buildings and houses. This place seemed so ancient, yet so real.  
  
A few minutes later, Gordo joined her. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and sat on the chair beside her. "See anything interesting out there?"  
  
"All of this is pretty interesting, Gordo. Everything here is just so beautiful," Lizzie said, as if she were in a dream.  
  
"Yeah, well two beautiful people in a beautiful city? With that combination, what could go wrong?" Gordo joked.  
  
Lizzie laughed. "Oh, I love you, Gordo," she said.  
  
Gordo smiled, "I love you too," he said. He gave her a kiss. The kiss he had been waiting forever since they arrived. "Let's go inside," he said and he took her hand and led her inside.  
  
Gordo closed the doors that led to the balcony and made sure the windows were covered.  
  
Lizzie sat on the bed and smiled, "What are you doing?"  
  
"Oh," Gordo said and he walked closer to the bed and nearer to her, "I think you know exactly what I am doing, McGuire."  
  
Lizzie scrunched up her nose, "You think?"  
  
"No, I know," Gordo said as he leaned over her and kissed her.  
  
Lizzie broke away from the kiss, "Then, what do you want, Gordo?"  
  
"I want you," he said as he went to kiss her again, only this time, the kiss was deeper and longer.  
  
Lizzie broke away for a minute, "Hold on, and let us get more comfortable," Lizzie said as she backed herself on the bed, and lay down. Gordo joined her, "This is better. Now, where were we?" Lizzie pulled him into a kiss, and they made love right in the heart of Sicily that afternoon. 


	5. Cinque

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Sigh. Okay, here I am, finally updating this story. I think I have an idea as to where I want to take this story. It doesn't seem very dramatic now, and it won't be as dramatic as Je t'aime, but it will have some drama, because, lets face it, life is drama. I am all for being random and spontanious, so if I throw in an occasional prison visit or affair (not in plans, but, I have the power) it will end up happy in the end. If you are reading Je t'aime, you know I LOVE obstacles. That being said, I love Lizzie/Gordo, and they belong together.   
  
Chapter Five  
  
A few days later, they were still enjoying the luxuries in Sicily. They were just getting used to everything. Lizzie and Gordo were planning on driving up to the ocean, and then taking their rental car up to the mainland. Ethan and Miranda decided they would stay down there.   
  
At the moment, Miranda and Ethan were out shopping, and Gordo was out at the post office. Lizzie was fixing lunch for herself. She was making a peanut butter an jelly sandwich.  
  
Gordo walked in, "Hey, Lizzie," he said and he walked behind her and gave her a hug.  
  
"Hey, baby," Lizzie said, "Did you have fun at the post office?"  
  
"Oh, yeah. There was a party and everything. Too bad you missed it. The stripper tell me to say 'hello' to you, though," Gordo said.  
  
"How nice," Lizzie said, and she put some peanut butter on Gordo's nose playfully.  
  
Gordo tried to stick his tongue up to his nose to lick it off, and succeeded, "Yum!"  
  
Lizzie made a face, "Eww! Ugh, Gordo, sometimes I wonder if I should be teaching you with my kindergarteners!"  
  
"Why? You have already taught me so much," Gordo said, kissing her neck.  
  
Lizzie pulled away, "Not now! I am trying to eat!"  
  
"What about me?"  
  
"What about you? Are you hungry?"  
  
"Is the Pope catholic?"  
  
"Well, do you want a sandwich?"  
  
"Is that an offer?"  
  
Lizzie rolled her eyes, "Can't you ever do anything for yourself?"  
  
"Would you like me to fix it?"  
  
"Can we stop with the questions already!" Lizzie said.  
  
"I don't know, can we?"  
  
Lizzie took a bite out of her sandwich and walked over to the counter, "Yes."  
  
"Fine," Gordo said, "I will make my own sandwich."  
  
"Okay," Lizzie said with her mouth full.  
  
Gordo got out the bread and started making his sandwich, "You know," he said, "I would have been more than happy to make us both sandwiches if you would have waited, but you didn't."  
  
"Oh, darn! If only!" Lizzie said as she continued eating her sandwich.   
  
Gordo sat next to her, and took a huge bite of his sandwich, "MMMMM! This is the best sandwich I have ever tasted!" he exclaimed, making loud smacking noises.  
  
Lizzie looked at him in disgust. Gordo noticed this, and stuck his tongue out at her while food was still in his mouth.  
  
"Um, excuse me while I throw up," Lizzie said. She laughed at Gordo, "You know, you are seriously starting to digress in age. Maybe I should call a doctor or something."  
  
"Go ahead, mommy."  
  
"I am not you're mommy."  
  
"Yes you are."  
  
"Okay, fine. If I'm you're mommy, then who is your daddy?" Lizzie asked, as she got up and put her plate in the sink. She looked at him and raised her eye brow questioningly at him, and went upstairs.   
  
"Okay, fine, you are not my mommy," Gordo yelled.  
  
"Good!" Lizzie yelled from upstairs.  
  
"I love you, Lizzie!"  
  
"I love you, too!" Lizzie yelled.  
  
Gordo finished his sandwich in the kitchen and cleaned up everything. He was pouring himself some milk when Miranda and Ethan came through the door.  
  
"Hey!" Gordo said.  
  
"Hey, Gordo!" Ethan said.  
  
"Ooh, Gordo, maybe you can help me explain something to Ethan," Miranda said.  
  
"Alright, I can give it a shot," Gordo said, then he looked at Ethan, "Ethan, Something is everything that isn't nothing. Got it?"  
  
Miranda rolled her eyes, "Gee, thanks, Gordo."  
  
"Anything to help people less fortunate than I," Gordo said.  
  
"Oh, cry me a river, Gordo. Seriously, I want your opinion," Miranda said.  
  
"On what?"  
  
"Is it okay for guys who are involved in relationships to check out other women?"  
  
Gordo looked at Ethan, who was nodding his head, "Of course, as long as they don't touch."  
  
"See?! I Told you it was cool!" Ethan said, "Even Gordo says so."  
  
"Miranda ignored this and continued her questions, "What about flirting?"  
  
"Yeah, because flirting isn't touching."  
  
"I told you!" Ethan exclaimed, getting all excited, "Ha! We are right, and you are wrong."  
  
"What about for Lizzie, Gordo?"  
  
"What about Lizzie?"  
  
"Is it okay for Lizzie to flirt with other guys?"  
  
"Oh, of course not!"  
  
"HAA! You see! This is such a double standard! Men are pigs!"  
  
"Yeah, but would you want us any other way?" Gordo asked, wiping his milk mustache off with his shirt sleeve, knowing that would drive Miranda crazy.  
  
"Where is Lizzie?"  
  
"She's upstairs in our room. Why? Ooh! Let me guess! You have deep dark secrets you want to share with her!" Gordo said.  
  
"Yeah, that's it!" Miranda answered, sarcastically, "And they are all about you, Gordo!"  
  
"Oh, goodie!" Gordo said, in mock excitement.  
  
"Don't flatter yourself. Actually, I just bought some new clothes, and i wanted to see what Lizzie thought of them."  
  
"Ohh, fashion show!" Gordo exclaimed, again in mock-excitement.  
  
"Yeah, you want to come up and see the clothes, Gordo?"  
  
Gordo deepened his voice, "Uh, actually, I was thinking about, you know, working on the car and stuff. You know, make sure it is all good and stuff for the trip. Yeah," Gordo said. He was attempting to sound manly.  
  
Miranda rolled her eyes and headed upstairs, ready to show Lizzie her clothes. 


	6. Sei

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Thank you for the reviews! I am glad you like it.   
  
Chapter Six  
  
Lizzie was lying on her bed when Miranda came in.  
  
"Lizzie, I" Miranda started, but she then noticed Lizzie was upset, "What's wrong?"  
  
Lizzie sat up, "Oh, nothing much, Miranda. I guess I was just contemplating life," Lizzie answered.  
  
Miranda sat down next to Lizzie, "Which part of life?"  
  
"The Gordo part of life," Lizzie answered.  
  
"Lizzie, is everything going okay with you two?" Miranda asked, concerned for her two best friends.  
  
"What do you mean?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"I mean, you two aren't fighting or anything, are you?"  
  
"Not that I'm aware of. Why? Did he say we were?"   
  
"No, no! Lizzie, he didn't say anything. I was just wondering. So, why are you thinking about Gordo so hard?"  
  
"I don't know. Don't you ever think about Ethan?"  
  
"All the time," Miranda said, smiling, "But usually not so seriously. I mean, when I think about Ethan, I usually end up smiling."  
  
"Really?"  
  
Miranda nodded her head dreamily, "Yeah."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because I love him," Miranda said, as if she were admitting something horrible.  
  
"No, I mean, what about Ethan makes you so happy?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"I don't know. He is funny, he's nice, he's sweet, and he's a great friend, and He is also a great boyfriend. Why this sudden curiosity, Lizzie?"   
  
"I guess I was just curious," Lizzie said.  
  
"Oh. Well, no harm in that," Miranda asked.  
  
"Do you think you and Ethan will ever get married?"  
  
"I suppose so. Why? Do you know something?"  
  
Lizzie laughed, "No, no more that what you know."  
  
"Oh, Yeah, our time will come. But, we're young right now. Embracing life as I comes. I want to settle down and marry eventually, but it doesn't have to be tomorrow. Do you want to marry Gordo?"  
  
Lizzie smiled at the thought of marriage, "Yeah," she admitted.  
  
"Well, that's not a crime, Lizzie. Is that what Gordo wants?"  
  
"I don't know. Sometimes I think 'he will ask me soon, I just know it,' and then other times I just think maybe I should just be patient. Lately, though, I with the time was now," Lizzie admitted.  
  
"You should talk to Gordo about this."  
  
"I know I should. I just, well, I don't want to seem pushy or anything. I don't want to push him into going something he doesn't want to do," Lizzie explained.  
  
Miranda nodded her head as if she understood, "Yeah, but I really don't think Gordo would think that about you."  
  
"You don't? Why not?"  
  
"Because I know he loves you more than anything in the world. Your happiness means the world to him."  
  
"Yeah, and his happiness means the world to me," Lizzie said, "which is why I don't want to bring up the subject."  
  
"Lizzie, don't be scared of Gordo. He loves you. There is no one in this world he would want to see happier than you. It's up to you, but it you think you are ready, I think Gordo deserves to know what's on your mind," Miranda said,  
  
"You really think so?" Lizzie asked, still doubtful.  
  
"Lizzie, if you tell him all of what you have told me, you are all set. Just make sure this is what you want," Miranda said.  
  
"I wish it were that simple," Lizzie said.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Nothing," Lizzie said, "I just need to talk to Gordo about something later, that's all."  
  
Miranda smiled, "That's my girl. Gordo is really lucky to have you!"  
  
"Thanks, Miranda! So, what is it you wanted to show me, anyway?"  
  
"Oh, yeah, I wanted to show you some of the clothes I bought today," Miranda said.  
  
"Ooh! Let me see!" Lizzie said acting a little more excited than she was.  
  
Miranda spent the next half hour showing off Lizzie her new clothes. After that, they went to go see what Gordo and Ethan were up to. Ethan and Gordo were watching TV in the living room. Miranda and Lizzie joined them. "What is this?" Lizzie asked, looking at the screen.  
  
"Oh, well, these people have digital cable, and Ethan managed to find the Golf Channel," Gordo explained.  
  
"Are you kidding?" Miranda asked, looking disappointed.  
  
"No, babe. Gordo is correct. Isn't this sweet?" Ethan said.  
  
"Yeah, sweet as candy," Miranda said, unenthusiastically. Lizzie couldn't help but smile when Miranda mouthed to Lizzie, "ayudame!" (Spanish for "help me!")  
  
"What were you doing?" Gordo asked, looking at Lizzie. At least Gordo could divert his eyes from the TV for now.  
  
"Oh, nothing much. We were talking and Miranda was trying on clothes," Lizzie said.  
  
"Did you try any clothes on?" Gordo asked.  
  
"No, I just gave my opinions to Miranda's new clothes," Lizzie said.  
  
"Oh," Gordo said, "I missed you, Lizzie." Gordo took Lizzie's hand and kissed it.  
  
"You did?" Lizzie asked, looking impressed. She could see Miranda smiling from somewhere.  
  
"Of course, Liz! I always miss you!"   
  
"Aww! That's so sweet, Gordo!" Lizzie said, and she kissed him on the mouth.  
  
Miranda and Ethan watched, "You know, Miranda, I missed you, too," Ethan said, trying out what Gordo did.  
  
"You did?" Miranda said.  
  
"As always," Ethan said.  
  
"Aww! I am glad you missed me!" Miranda said.  
  
"Aren't you going to kiss me?"  
  
"No," Miranda said.  
  
"What about a hug?"  
  
"Ah, maybe later," Miranda said, getting up and going to the kitchen, "Boy, am I hungry!"  
  
Ethan looked over at Gordo, who saw the whole thing, "Man! How do you do that?"  
  
Gordo smiled, "I don't know," he said, then he looked at Lizzie, "I guess some people just get all the luck."  
  
Lizzie smiled and Gordo kissed her again. They started making out  
  
"Man, could you two go up to your room or something?" Ethan said.  
  
"Oh, I think it's sweet!" Miranda said.  
  
"But it's like gross!" Ethan said.  
  
"No, it's not!" Miranda said, hitting Ethan with a pillow. She was eating a banana.  
  
"Yeah it is! Its like soft core porn without all the excitement," Ethan said.  
  
"Oh, there's excitement all right," Miranda said looking at Gordo.  
  
Gordo and Lizzie stopped kissing, and Gordo blushed.  
  
"Why'd you stop? You were getting so excited!" Miranda said.  
  
"We don't have to listen to this! Come on, Lizzie, let's go where others won't taunt us!" Gordo said, standing up, and pulling Lizzie up.  
  
"Oh! Come on! I was just starting to enjoy it!" Miranda said.  
  
"Oh yeah?" Gordo said. He threw a pillow at Miranda, "I will give you something to enjoy!" He threw a pillow at Miranda and ran up the stairs. Lizzie followed.  
  
Once in the room with the door shut, Lizzie and Gordo laughed. "You know, I don't know who is worse, Ethan or Miranda," Gordo said.  
  
"They both have their moments," Lizzie said.  
  
"Moments?" Gordo said, questioningly, "Try lives!"  
  
"Oh, come on, Gordo!"  
  
"What? What did I do?"  
  
"We all have our moments! You would have said the same things if they were making out in front of you," Lizzie said.  
  
"I would not!" Gordo said defensively.  
  
"Oh, you wouldn't?"   
  
"Well," Gordo admitted, "Not in so many words."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "That's better!"  
  
"Should we go back down there?"  
  
"No, actually, Gordo, stay. We need to talk," Lizzie said.  
  
"We need to talk?" Gordo repeated, "Should I be scared?"  
  
Lizzie shook her head, "I don't think you should be scared."  
  
"Okay, good. Most of the time when someone says 'we need to talk' it isn't the best of news."  
  
Lizzie laughed, "No, no. This isn't really news. This is actually a question."  
  
"A question?" Gordo repeated, "Okay, ask."  
  
"Do you ever think about our future, Gordo?"  
  
"What do you mean? Do you mean my future and your future, or do you mean OUR future?"  
  
"The latter one."  
  
Gordo sat down and said, "Yeah, all the time, Lizzie. I mean, how can I not?"  
  
"Well, where do you think it is headed?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"I think," Gordo started then he thought for a moment, "I am very happy were we are now."  
  
"So you don't want to get married and have children?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"Get married? Of course I want to get married, I just want to be able to support us before we get married."  
  
"But we can afford it now," Lizzie said.  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "Yeah, but what about a house. I mean, I assume you would want to move into a house when we get married and houses cost money. I don't want to be in debt or anything."  
  
"Okay," Lizzie said, "What about the other thing?"  
  
"What other thing?"  
  
"What about children? You want children, don't you?"  
  
"I don't care if I have children," Gordo said.  
  
"You don't care?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"No, I don't. I mean, as long as I have you with me all my life, I am set," Gordo said.  
  
"You never told me you didn't want children before," Lizzie said.  
  
"It isn't that I don't want children; I just really don't have an opinion," Gordo explained.  
  
"Well, I want children. What do you think of that?"  
  
"Well, if it is what you want, it is what I want," Gordo said, trying not to start an argument.  
  
Lizzie cried, "Really? So now you want children?"  
  
"Lizzie, I don't care!" Gordo exclaimed.  
  
""I thought you knew I wanted children!" Lizzie said.  
  
"I thought you knew I didn't care!"   
  
"Well, I didn't"  
  
"I am sorry. Now you know. Listen, I would love to have children some day, but I don't think I am ready for children right now. Give me a few years, okay?"  
  
"You mean, you might want children in a few years?"  
  
"Yeah," Gordo said.  
  
"But not now?"  
  
"Nope," Gordo said, "I am just not ready for that."  
  
Lizzie wiped a tear streaming down her face and sat down on the bed, "I am sorry, Gordo. I didn't mean to make an argument about this. I just wanted to see where we stood."  
  
"Good," Gordo said and he hugged Lizzie, "Because for a minute there, I thought you were going to tell me that you were pregnant." He laughed lightly at the thought.  
  
Lizzie started to cry again.  
  
"What's the matter, Lizzie?"  
  
"Gordo," she said, and she turned to look at him. She then stood up and headed for the door, "I am pregnant."  
  
Lizzie opened the door and left the room. She shut the door on her way out.  
  
~~~  
  
Did any of you see that coming? I DO like drama, don't I? Well, please review, and I will update as soon as possible. Let me remind you that Lizzie is about 24 in this story. 


	7. Sette

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! Thank you so much for the reviews. I really hope you like this story. Also, I changed the summary because the plot sort of changed.   
  
Chapter Seven  
  
Gordo stared at the door in shock. He should have said something, but what was he supposed to say? He had just made a complete idiot out of himself with Lizzie. How could Lizzie ever forgive him? Now, he wasn't sure what he could do to make things better.  
  
He went downstairs, what he should have done in the first place to follow Lizzie. Miranda and Ethan were down there, looking slightly confused. They saw Gordo. "What's going on?" Miranda asked.  
  
Gordo said nothing. In fact, he didn't even know what was going on. Lizzie had just told him she was pregnant. Was she kidding? Was this some sort of joke? This isn't the type of thing you joke about, is it?   
  
"Gordo, are you okay?" Ethan asked.  
  
"Yeah, what's the matter with Lizzie?" Miranda asked.  
  
"I'm not sure," Gordo said, then he snapped out of it, "Where is she?"  
  
"She just said she needed some peace and quiet and went into one of the downstairs rooms," Miranda said, "Did you two get in an argument or something?"   
  
"I don't know," Gordo said, "Did you know anything about this?"  
  
"About what?" Miranda asked.  
  
"I just- I can't believe she didn't tell me sooner," Gordo said, more to himself than anyone. He sat down on the couch.  
  
Miranda sat down next to him, "Gordo, what's the big deal? I mean, Lizzie loves you. You love Lizzie. I thought both of you were ready for this," Miranda said, thinking it was about marriage.   
  
"So you knew before she told me?" Gordo said.  
  
"We had a brief conversation earlier today. Why?"   
  
"Oh, no reason. I just made the biggest mistake of my life by telling her I don't want children," Gordo said.  
  
"Ohh. I take it Lizzie wants children," Miranda said.  
  
"Well, yeah. She is having a baby. My baby," Gordo said.  
  
"Gordo, what did you just say?" Miranda said.  
  
"Lizzie just told me she's pregnant," Gordo said.  
  
"She is?" Miranda said, "This is great!" Miranda exclaimed. Then she saw how glum Gordo looked.  
  
"I thought you said you knew," Gordo said.  
  
Miranda shook her head, "No, I didn't know anything about this. I thought you were talking about marriage."  
  
"No. Lizzie says she is pregnant. Why didn't she tell me she was pregnant?" Gordo wondered aloud.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe she was waiting for the right time," Miranda rationalized.  
  
"I can't believe I acted like such a fool."  
  
"What did you say?"  
  
"She asked me if I wanted children, and I told her I didn't care if I had children," Gordo said. He put his head in his hand.  
  
"And you had no clue she was pregnant?" Miranda asked.  
  
"No, I really didn't," Gordo said, "or I wouldn't have said those things."  
  
"Do you really not care if you have children?"  
  
"I don't know. The way I meant to say it came out wrong. I love Lizzie with all my heart and I know she wants children."  
  
"Then why did you say that?"  
  
"I don't care if I have children. All I care about is Lizzie, and I know I want to spend the rest of my life with Lizzie. With or without children," Gordo explained.  
  
"Did you try to tell her that?"  
  
"Of course! She wouldn't listen! Now, I don't know what to do! I know she doesn't want to see me, but I need to talk to her. If she is pregnant, we should talk about it," Gordo said.  
  
"Well, Gordo, I am staying out of this argument, but would having a baby be such a bad thing?"  
  
"Well, we aren't married or even engaged," Gordo said.  
  
"Forget about that," Miranda said, "I mean, would having a baby right now ruin your life?"  
  
"I don't know. All I want to do is straighten things out with Lizzie. This was just so unexpected, I don't know if she will ever forgive me. I mean, this is a baby we are talking about. What if we break up over this and she has this child? I mean, this child will grow up hating his own father!" Gordo said.  
  
"Gordo, you are overreacting," Miranda said.  
  
"Am I? I mean, this is a huge thing I am not sure I am ready for," Gordo said.  
  
"Gordo, calm down! You are obviously not ready to have a conversation with her about this! Why don't you go and think about what you want to say? That way, you won't say anything you might regret later," Miranda said.  
  
"What about Lizzie?"  
  
"I will check on her."  
  
Gordo got up. He looked defeated, although Miranda had a good point. He needed to be level headed when he spoke to Lizzie. He needed to know what he was going to say. He loved Lizzie very much.  
  
Gordo went to his bedroom and lay on the bed. He had a lot to think about. When did life get so hectic? He always imagined marriage before babies. That was what usually happens. Was this some sort of punishment for living with Lizzie before marriage?   
  
At this point, Gordo didn't even know what he wanted. He always imagined having children at some point, but he never considered them mandatory. He also always imagined having them with Lizzie.   
  
Now, his entire mind felt shattered. He felt like he knew nothing, and he could have blown everything he had with Lizzie. He wouldn't know what to do if he lost Lizzie.  
  
On the other hand, what was he supposed to say to Lizzie? Was he supposed to be happy for her? This was, after all, an unplanned pregnancy from two people who aren't married or financially ready for anything extra, especially another human. Gordo hadn't even really gotten his feet of the ground with his career. All of this was too overwhelming. Wasn't this supposed to be a vacation?   
  
He felt like such a jerk. Lizzie meant the world to him, and if having a baby were what she wanted, he would eventually learn to accept the facts too. He would probably be more enthusiastic once the baby was actually born. He thought for a long time, and finally concluded that this pregnancy was probably a blessing in disguise. He just had to figure out a way to convince Lizzie he really believed that.   
  
He hadn't even thought about Lizzie and what she wanted. She did want the baby, right? He only assumed she wanted the baby because she said she wanted children. Maybe she felt apprehension about a baby as well. The tone he set earlier with the subject probably didn't help either.   
  
He decided he would talk to Lizzie the next day. He wanted to go on the road trip through the mainland with Lizzie, if she still wanted. This could be an opportunity to redeem himself and prove that he was truly sorry about what he said earlier.  
  
Gordo could only hope at this point.  
  
~``~~``~~``~~``~~``~~``  
  
please review! 


	8. Otto

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! I am so sorry about my lack of updates for this story. Hopefully, I will soon be able to pick up some sort of consistency with this story that I lost. Anyway, thanks for the reviews and I will update as soon as possible. I wasn't going to update this until I finished Je t'aime, but then I decided I could focus on my other story. Anyway, please review. If this much time lapses between an update ever again, yell at me. Please, yell right in my face and let me smell your breath and let spit land on my face, because this much time is ridiculous.  
  
Chapter Eight  
  
Miranda went to the room where Lizzie was and knocked on the door.  
  
"Go away!" she heard Lizzie say. She sounded like she was crying, not that Miranda was surprised.  
  
"Lizzie? It's me. Miranda? Can I come in?" Miranda said.  
  
There was no reply from Lizzie's side. Miranda waited by the door, until a minute later, the door was opened and Lizzie, who looked horrible, starred at Miranda. Lizzie stood aside and let Miranda in. Miranda entered and closed the door behind her.  
  
Lizzie sat on the couch and Miranda sat next to her. Miranda waited for Lizzie to say something, but Lizzie didn't look like she was about to start a discussion.  
  
"So, Gordo told us about your pregnancy. Congratulations, girl!" Miranda said, trying to lighten the mood.  
  
Lizzie wiped her eyes with a tissue, "Thanks. I might have to handle this all by myself, but its good to know that at least one of my friends supports me."  
  
Miranda put her arm around Lizzie's shoulder, "What are you talking about? Gordo supports you!"  
  
Lizzie started crying again. "The thing is, Gordo was supposed to be the easiest person to tell. I mean, I was more scared of telling my parents than anyone because of the whole sex before marriage thing. But now, I don't know if I will ever tell my parents."  
  
"Aww! I am so sorry," Miranda looked at Lizzie sympathetically, "But, honestly, I don't think Gordo is upset about this. It will just take time to get used to, that's all."  
  
"This is supposed to be one of the happiest times of my life. Women are supposed to be glowing when they are pregnant. Do you see me glowing??"  
  
"Lizzie, are you listening to me? I really think you should talk to Gordo about this before you get all bent out of shape about this. You are going to have to talk to him eventually, anyway."  
  
Lizzie looked at her friend, "What am I going to say to him? I am so mad at him I could scream!"  
  
"Then scream," Miranda said, simply.  
  
Lizzie looked at Miranda weirdly, "What do you mean."  
  
"It won't solve anything, but if it makes you feel better, scream."  
  
"I will. . .at him."  
  
"Okay. But Lizzie, you are going to talk to him about this."  
  
"I don't think I have much of a choice."  
  
"Well, when you talk to him, please talk to him with an open mind. It could take a while for this to sink in. I don't know how long you have known about this, but were you excited right away about this?"  
  
Lizzie thought about this, "No, but that's not the point. The point is that Gordo basically flat out told be that he didn't want children."  
  
Miranda crossed her arms, "Lizzie, that's not exactly true. Give Gordo a little credit. Gordo said that he didn't know whether or not he wanted children."  
  
"I know, but still," Lizzie said and she blew her nose, "the fact that he has to think about it leaves reason for doubt in his mind."  
  
"I still think you should talk this out with him. Not today, but soon. This way, you can both have a sense of what the other is feeling about the situation and take it from there. You want the baby, don't you?"  
  
"Of course I do! I have dreamt about having children for a long time. Ever since I found out I was pregnant; I knew that this was my time. I don't feel like I am too young or anything. I feel ready. Knowing that Gordo isn't ready hurts my feelings, though."  
  
"Good. You should tell him that when you talk to him."  
  
Lizzie looked down, "I suppose. I just wish he had a little more optimism. I mean, I think I am ready, but I am scared, too. But, the more scared I become, the more excited I feel. This is a baby inside of me that was created by Gordo and me."  
  
Miranda put her hand on Lizzie's shoulder, "This is another thing you should definitely tell Gordo."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "I just don't know if I can ever forgive that jerk."  
  
"Well, you are going to have you."  
  
"Not anytime soon," Lizzie said.  
  
"Well, do you think you are still going on that road trip tomorrow?"  
  
Lizzie gasped, "Oh no! I forgot all about that!"   
  
"Well, you better start thinking about it, because you have been planning that for a very long time."  
  
"Well, I just won't go," Lizzie said, "We do not need to be spending over a week alone after all of this. I don't think I can handle that."  
  
Miranda shook her head, "I think you are going to have to go."  
  
"Why?" Lizzie asked, looking at her friend.  
  
"For your own good. And Gordo's, for that matter," Miranda said.  
  
"Are you crazy?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"No, Liz. Hear me out. It won't solve anything if you are both here with us not talking to each other. This way, you will be forced to talk about everything, and I'll bet you anything you will make up along the way. The last thing you need is Ethan and me standing in your. You and Gordo need some time to yourselves."  
  
Lizzie shook her head, "No, it's too soon."  
  
Miranda shook her own head, "No, it really isn't. In fact, I think it is perfect."  
  
"You really think so?"  
  
"Lizzie, I know you too so well, that only good things will happen from this. In fact, I am not asking you to go, I am demanding you to go."  
  
"But. . ."  
  
Miranda stopped her, "If no one else, do it for me."  
  
Lizzie took in a deep breath as she thought hard about this. As she exhaled, she nodded her head, "fine. But if I find that I can't stand it, I am calling you and you better come pick me up."  
  
Miranda nodded her head, "Of course."  
  
Miranda stood up.  
  
"Where are you going?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"I am going to tell Gordo to get his things together for your road trip. Unless you want to tell him yourself."  
  
"NO! I am definitely not going to talk to him now. I might change my mind."  
  
Miranda smiled, "Okay. Good night. I'll bring in some food for you in a few minutes for dinner."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head. At least she wasn't crying anymore.  
  
Miranda shut the door behind her and walked up to Gordo and Lizzie's room, where Gordo was.  
  
Miranda knocked on the door.  
  
"Who is it?" Gordo called from the other side.  
  
"It's me, Miranda," Miranda said, "Can I come in?"  
  
"Sure. It's unlocked."  
  
Miranda opened the door to find Gordo on the bed, staring at the ceiling.  
  
"Well," Miranda said as she sat on the foot of the bed, "I talked to her."  
  
Gordo sat up a little, to show interest, "What did she say?"  
  
"Well," Miranda said, "You two have to talk to each other."  
  
"She wants to talk to me?"  
  
"Not right now," Miranda said, "But the trip is still on for tomorrow."  
  
Gordo looked surprised by this comment, "Really?"  
  
Miranda nodded her head, "Yeah," and Miranda started to stand up and headed for the door, "So, you better make sure your stuff is all together."  
  
Miranda started to shut the door, but opened it back up, "I think this trip will be good for the both of you." Miranda shut the door.  
  
~~~  
  
And so the journey begins! Haha! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review and I will update as soon as possible. 


	9. Nove

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! Wow! Thanks for the great reviews and patience. I have a science project presentation tomorrow, and by some luck, I am the first person to go. I hate presentations. Anyway, think of me tomorrow (Friday) at like one in the afternoon.   
  
Oh, and the Italian I use in this story, unless otherwise noted, is actual Italian. I don't claim to be fluent, but I am trying to learn.  
  
Also, geography and me don't really go together, especially specific geography of Italy and where ports are and everything, so for the point of this story, feel free to doubt everything I say, but I wrote it knowing that it might not be totally correct.  
  
Chapter Nine  
  
The next morning, early enough for it to be dark, Gordo, Lizzie, Miranda, and Ethan were outside, seeing Lizzie and Gordo off on their road trip. There was obvious tension between Lizzie and Gordo, but Miranda decided to pretend that everyone was getting along swimmingly. Gordo dealt with packing while Miranda handled the still upset Lizzie sitting in the passenger seat of the car, looking as if she were on the verge of crying, staring out the window.  
  
"Lizzie, don't worry. This is supposed to be a fun trip!" Miranda said, trying to cheer Lizzie up.  
  
"I don't see how this will be a fun trip," Lizzie said, "Remind me again why I agreed to go through with this."  
  
Miranda sighed, "Because whether you like it or not, you are automatically bonded with Gordo for life because of this baby. I am not asking that you necessarily forgive him for all the awful and careless things he said, but I do think you should consider getting along with him. You two have too much of a history to not settle this."  
  
A tear fell from Lizzie's eyes. She felt like she was being forced to do this, and she was not comfortable with this situation, "Why?" she asked through her tears.  
  
Miranda raised her eye brows, "Why not?" She looked at Gordo and then noticed that he was shutting the trunk, and talking with Ethan. "Listen, I can't talk to you anymore, but try to get along with him and don't completely shut him out. You have to think positively. He agreed to go on this trip for a reason. I thought you did too."  
  
Lizzie considered this as they heard a car door open. Miranda and Lizzie looked over to see Gordo getting into the car. Lizzie looked back at Miranda, and all Miranda did was wink, "Gordo, you take good care of Lizzie, you hear me?" she said.  
  
Gordo nervously glanced at Lizzie and nodded his head, "Thanks. We will call you when we stop for the night."  
  
Miranda nodded her head, "Okay. Have fun! Bye!"  
  
"Bye," Lizzie said, without much enthusiasm.  
  
"Bye," Gordo said, with only a little more enthusiasm than Lizzie.  
  
"Bye," Miranda and Ethan said together.  
  
Gordo started the engine and started to drive off. Lizzie watched Ethan and Miranda as they slowly disappeared into her site. She was officially stuck with Gordo for the next week or so. No turning back.   
  
Secretly, though, Lizzie did hope that things would work out between her and Gordo. She was just really mad at him at the moment, and was not ready to forgive him yet. She didn't know how things would end up working up, but she hadn't completely given up on Gordo.  
  
Gordo hoped this trip worked out on this trip as well. The only reason he still agreed on this trip was because he thought the time he could spend alone with Lizzie might be beneficial and it would eventually force them to get along. He wanted to prove to Lizzie that he supported her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, and children were okay, too. He still felt stupid about his comments he made, but hoped that he would have the opportunity to have a conversation with Lizzie about this.  
  
Unfortunately, for both parties, it soon became apparent that they would not be talking right away. Lizzie, not being able to stand the silence, took out a book and began to read. At first, Gordo didn't mind this, but he soon began to feel bored himself, so he turned on the radio and listened to the Italian radio stations.  
  
Fortunately, for the both of them, they didn't have to stay in the car much longer, for they were going on a boat that would carry them to the Italian mainland. They would still be together on the boat that would carry them and the car, but it gave them more room to be apart from each other.  
  
At nine that morning, the boat left the docks, and not surprisingly, Lizzie went one way and Gordo didn't bother to follow her. Gordo didn't really know what to do, so he spend most of the time on the two hour boat trip near his car, either in it, or leaning against it. He enjoyed the scenery of the sea.  
  
Meanwhile, Lizzie suffered from a mixture of morning sickness and sea sickness in the bathroom. When she finally good enough to go outside to see the scenery. She debated about whether or not to get her sweater from the car, because of the morning sea breeze, but decided it wasn't worth the uncomfortable atmosphere of being around Gordo.   
  
Lizzie may have been sick, but she wasn't blind. She knew exactly where Gordo was on the boat, near the car, probably contemplating life or thinking really hard. She figured he deserved to be able to think, for she used the time to think herself.  
  
Lizzie closed her eyes and could almost imagine Gordo's arm around her. She knew she was dreaming, but she couldn't help herself from smiling at the thought. As much as she hated him, she missed having him on her side and him being with her.  
  
~~~  
  
~Miranda~  
  
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ethan asked as they went inside. He was referring to sending Lizzie and Gordo off together.   
  
Miranda nodded her head, "Positive. I mean, what's the worst that could happen?" She then went back to bed. It was too early for her to get up for the day.  
  
~~~  
  
Please review. I find it very interesting that this story is so different from my other story. I mean, in this story, Lizzie and Gordo are forced together, whereas in Je t'aime, Lizzie and Gordo are forced apart. There are other opposites in the stories, but I don't want to give anything away or anything. Anyway, please review, and I will try to update over the weekend, but please have patience.   
  
~Piacere 


	10. Dieci

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! Thanks for all the reviews! I am trying to work on both stories at the same time. Anyway, for those of you who care, my presentation went okay I think. Buongiorno means good day, by the way. I know a little and have all these tapes, books, and DVDs to help me learn Italian, I just choose to take my time in actually learning it all. Anyway, enjoy the chapter and I will update as soon as possible!  
  
Chapter Ten  
  
BEEP!  
  
A loud sound on the boat indicated that they would be reaching the mainland momentarily. Lizzie was so busy daydreaming about Gordo that she hardly realized that the mainland of Italy was right in front of her.  
  
On the loud speaker, someone made an announcement in Italian, and then it was translated into other languages. The announcement said that if you have a car on the boat to please wait until after everyone else is off the boat and to go to your car now.  
  
Lizzie sighed loudly and turned toward the section of the boat that had the car. She slowly strolled over to the area, taking as much time as possible, for she was still thinking about life.  
  
She had to snap out of it when she saw the car and Gordo leaning against it. He wasn't looking at her. Instead, he was watching all the people. It was like he was trying to do the same thing as Lizzie, avoid eye contact. Lizzie knew that if she looked at Gordo, she would break down in tears. Gordo felt the same way. Lizzie debated about whether or not to walk over to him. He looked so peaceful and as if he were in deep thought, that Lizzie wished her camera wasn't in the car, or she would take a picture.   
  
It was almost like she was waiting for a signal from him to tell her it was okay to walk over there. She knew he probably wasn't going to give her a signal, because he probably didn't even know she was standing there. Minutes passed as she continued to stare at Gordo. It never occurred to her that Gordo would eventually look back at her, but he did. He looked at her with sadness in his eyes.   
  
Lizzie turned away to wipe any tears and turned back and walked toward the car. She had no particular expression on her face, which disappointed Gordo. Gordo wanted things to be settled for the both of them and for the two of them to be talking once again. He couldn't take back thie things he said, but he could prove to her that he was wrong about what he said, but he knew to prove that it would take more than an apology.  
  
When Lizzie reached the car, she went to the passenger side of the car and leaned on it. After everyone else had left the boat, another announcement was made. It said that the carport was in a different area of the marina, so they would have to go over there.  
  
Lizzie looked around, to see that their were about eight cars with them, each with people waiting, like the two of them, as two captains came around, to see their boat tickets and ask some questions  
  
When the captains reached Lizzie and Gordo, the officers motioned for Lizzie to go to the other side of the car to answer some questions.  
  
The captains asked if they were citizens of Italy, and when they answered no, they were asked more questions regarding the car and their visit and luggage. They also asked to see their passports. The officers moved away from their car after a few minutes and Gordo looked at Lizzie and Lizzie looked back, which caused them to quickly turn away.  
  
"Um, the officers told us that we could go ahead and get into our car," Gordo said, breaking the silence that had lingered between the two of them all morning.  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, and walked back to the other side of the car. She didn't say anything as she opened the door. If the back wasn't already full, both of them could be sure that Lizzie would be sitting in the backseat instead.  
  
Once Lizzie was in the car, and Gordo was sure that he couldn't be heard, he mumbled a few curse words and let out a huge sigh, and opened his car door and climbed in.  
  
He must have though of a million ways to start a conversation, but couldn't bring himself to talk to her. Five minutes later, the boat was moving again, and five minutes after that, the boat came to another halt and a ramp was attached to the boat.  
  
The same two captains, followed by two more uniformed men came by to help the cars off the boat. They directed each car off the boat, and one by one, each car slowly reached the land. Once they were on the land, Gordo drove off the carport and onto the road. They had two more hours until they would reach the city they would first stay in, Taranto.   
  
Once they were on the road, though, Gordo soon realized that the car needed some more gas, so he drove into the nearest petrol station. While Gordo got out of the car to handle the gas, he was surprised to see Lizzie getting out of the car.  
  
"I need to find a bathroom," she said as she walked into the convenience store station. Gordo watched as she walked away. No matter how angry she was or what was going on between them, he always thought she was beautiful, even if she had on her traveling clothes and was walking to the bathroom. He put the pump into the tank and waited as he filled the car up. He had never done this in a foreign country, so he hoped he was doing this right.  
  
When the tank was full, he took out the pump and closed the tank. Lizzie hasn't come back yet, so Gordo decided it wouldn't hurt him if he used the restroom himself.  
  
He walked toward the station and used the restroom quickly and went to pay for the gas. He still did not see Lizzie, but he figured she was in the car waiting for him.  
  
He paid for the gas and walked toward his car, and as he expected, Lizzie was in their, waiting for him. He got into the car and noticed Lizzie was holding a brown paper bag and taking out the contents. Lizzie bought some candy while she was in the store, along with some water. He started the car. When Lizzie took the candy and a bottle of water out, she handed the bag to Gordo.  
  
"I thought you might get thirsty," Lizzie explained simply, as Gordo took out a bottle of water Lizzie had bought for him.  
  
"Thanks," Gordo said, in a husky voice. He cleared his throat. At least Lizzie was talking. She only said two sentences to him, but it was a start. They were on the road again.  
  
Lizzie finished her candy and sipped her water. A few minutes later, she fell asleep though. Every once in a while, Gordo would turn away from the road and look at her as she looked so peaceful. He smiled, forgetting that they were fighting, until he saw a book on the floor next to her, "What to do When You Are Expecting."   
  
That book was his reality. He-or Lizzie was expecting a child-their child. This child was a miracle-a miracle that would belong to Lizzie and him for the rest of their lives. For he, David Zephyr Gordon, was going to be a father. As this reality hit him, he felt a shiver down his spine, for he knew, in the back of his head, that this miracle was what he wanted out of life.   
  
~~~  
  
Please review! I will update as soon as possible, I promise!   
  
~piacere 


	11. Undici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! I feel like I am on some sort of role with all these updates in the past week or two. I don't know about you, but I like this role. Extra snaps to me (you know, from Legally Blonde 2 . . .yeah)  
  
Chapter 11  
  
Lizzie was still sleeping by the time they had reached their destination. By now, it was in the early afternoon. Gordo debated about whether or not to wake Lizzie up. They still weren't quite on good terms yet.  
  
He quietly turned off the engine and sat in the car. They were in front of their hotel that they would be staying at for the night.  
  
After thinking about it for a few minutes, Gordo decided that the best way to handle the situation was to wake her up by touching her and talking to her. If this situation was normal, he would honk his horn, turn the radio on loudly, or yell at her, but he wasn't trying to get even more on her bad side than he already was.  
  
Nope, he had to prove to her that he was mature. Mature enough to the extent that he was ready to be a father.  
  
"Lizzie," Gordo said, speaking softly as he touched her on the shoulder, "We are in Taranto at the hotel. Lizzie, wake up," he said.  
  
Slowly, Lizzie's eyes fluttered open and she looked around and realized she was in a car with Gordo.  
  
Gordo hoped that by some small chance that when waking her up, she would forget for one second that they were fighting and reach over and give him a kiss, but he had no such luck. He missed her kisses so much. He missed them enough to decide that he would never argue with Lizzie again if they were to ever get back together. Unfortunately, Lizzie seemed to remember that she and Gordo were fighting when she woke up.  
  
Lizzie looked outside the car, "Is this our hotel?"  
  
Gordo nodded his head, not that it made a difference because she wasn't looking at him, and then said, "Yeah, this is it."  
  
Lizzie sat there for a minute. She didn't really want to say anything to him, but it was her turn to speak. After a few moments, Lizzie unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door, "I have to use the bathroom," she said.  
  
Gordo got out as well and started to follow her, "Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked, because he knew that pregnant women had to go to the bathroom a lot and had morning sickness.  
  
Lizzie shook her head, "Not unless you can figure out a way to go to the bathroom for me."  
  
"Oh," Gordo said, and he stopped following her and went back to the car to get out their clothes and everything and went to check in at the front desk. Since they were only staying for one night, they brought a smaller bag to share that held enough clothes for them to last for the next twenty-four hours. Of course, they came up to this idea before they were fighting.  
  
By the time he got the key for their room, Lizzie was out of the bathroom and standing with him.  
  
"We are in room 203," he said.  
  
Lizzie, who looked tired, nodded her head, "Okay."  
  
"You want to go into the room now?" Gordo asked, as if they had a lot of other choices.   
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "Okay."  
  
Gordo headed toward the elevator and Lizzie followed. The hotel seemed nice. Their were a few people in the lobby, but not a lot of people.  
  
They got into the elevator and went to the second floor and to their room. In their room, they had a slight problem-their was only one bed.   
  
"I'll sleep on the floor," Gordo said, even though Lizzie hadn't said anything. Gordo could tell by the look on Lizzie's face that she didn't like the setting, though, which was why he offered.  
  
Lizzie nodded her head and set her purse on her bed. Lizzie then headed toward the bathroom for a glass of water.  
  
"Gordo?" she called.  
  
"Yes?" Gordo said, shocked about the fact that she was talking to him. He stood up.  
  
"Where can I get some ice?" she asked, appearing from the bathroom with a glass of water.  
  
"I'll get some for you," Gordo offered.  
  
"No, you don't have to," Lizzie argued.  
  
"I know," he said, "But I want to."  
  
Lizzie looked at him and slowly nodded her head, "Okay."  
  
"Do you need anything else?"  
  
Lizzie shook her head, "No, just the ice."  
  
Gordo nodded his head and got the key and left the room.  
  
Lizzie sighed the second he left. She felt really hot and a little sick, but didn't want Gordo to know how bad she felt. She didn't want him to take care of her.  
  
While Lizzie waited for Gordo, she went to the bed and started to rest. She was still hot, so she took off her shirt, which left her in her jeans and bra. Realizing that the jeans weren't helping her cool off, she took her jeans off, too, leaving her with her with only her bra and underwear. She stayed on the bed while she waited for the ice.  
  
A few minutes later, Gordo returned, and when he saw Lizzie on the bed as she was, he apologized and turned away.  
  
"Where's the ice?" Lizzie asked, still somewhat hot.  
  
"They don't give ice away here," he said.  
  
"Oh," Lizzie said, and she looked at Gordo and noticed he was avoiding looking at her. She smiled internally at the thought of him avoiding looking at her as if he had never seen her like this.  
  
"Are you hot?" Gordo asked.  
  
"Yeah," Lizzie said, weakly, "Maybe a cold shower will help."  
  
Lizzie stood up and went to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. A few seconds later, he heard the shower running.  
  
In the meantime, Gordo decided to do something. He was hungry, but didn't want to go anywhere without Lizzie, so he decided to wait for her and try and read a magazine. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to concentrate enough to actually read the magazine. His mind was on other matters and things.  
  
Five minutes later, the shower stopped, and Lizzie came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her. Because he couldn't come up with a better idea without looking like a pervert, Gordo turned away from her while she dressed.  
  
"What do you want to do about lunch?" he asked her, still looking the other way.  
  
Lizzie felt like she was going to be sick at the mention of food, but again, didn't want Gordo to know how she felt, "Um, why don't we eat at the hotel?"  
  
"Okay," Gordo said, "Just tell me when you are ready."  
  
"Actually," Lizzie said, "Can you bring it up here?"  
  
Gordo turned around and looked at Lizzie, concerned, "Why? Are you okay?"  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, trying to look convinced, "I just have a little head ache."  
  
"Would you like any Advil?" he asked, "Because I do have some Advil in the car."  
  
Lizzie shook her head, "No thanks. I am not supposed to have Advil anyway."  
  
"Why?" Gordo asked, without really thinking.  
  
"Pregnant women are not supposed to have medicine," Lizzie said, speaking quietly, as if she was ashamed that she was pregnant.  
  
"Oh," Gordo said, not able to think of anything better to say, "I will bring you back something." Gordo got up and left the room once again. Once he was gone, Lizzie was on a mission to try and find some sort of air conditioning or a fan because the Italian afternoon heat was getting to her.  
  
Finally, she found a fan in her closet and set it up next to her as she lay on the bed, trying to feel better. Between the heat and the feeling of a need to throw up, Lizzie needed to rest.  
  
~~~  
  
Please review. Next chapter, can Gordo help Lizzie anymore while she feels sick? Will they ever talk about what they need to talk about??? 


	12. Dodici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Thanks to the one person who reviewed the last chapter! It meant a lot to me! Thanks for your patience with this story.   
  
Chapter 12  
  
Gordo returned to the room about fifteen minutes later with some food. He set the food on the table near the window and sat down. He didn't want to disturb Lizzie, as she didn't look like she felt okay.   
  
"Lunch is ready," he said to Lizzie, who was on the bed, wearing very little clothing. He was concerned about her, but didn't know, given the current situation, how to go about showing his concern.  
  
"Okay," said, still feeling weak. The fan was blowing in her direction, which was helping a little, but she still felt really bad.  
  
Gordo watched, as she lay there, helpless. He felt so guilty and selfish eating while she lay there looking miserable. "Are you hungry?"  
  
Lizzie slowly nodded her head, "Yeah, I'll be there in a minute."  
  
"Okay," Gordo said, in a small voice. He felt sorry for her and that she felt this badly. He wanted to go up and give her a hug and comfort her, but he didn't know if that would be a good idea.  
  
A few minutes later, Lizzie finally got up and went to the table with the food. She sat down across from Gordo and Gordo handed her food, which was pasta and bread, with water. Lizzie took a sip of the water and started eating the food, slowly.  
  
Gordo tried to discretely watch her as she ate, but being discrete was hard, as they were sitting directly across from each other. Every once in a while, though, he would watch her do everything, and as he watched her, it just seemed different. She was eating for two, and for some reason this fascinated Gordo. It was a simple fact of life, but Gordo had never felt so awkward watching someone do the most mundane activity.   
  
The sad part was that he barely knew anything. All he knew was that she was pregnant with his child. He didn't know anything else, like the due date or the sex. This made him go into another stage of guilt. Now that he was getting used to the fact that he was about to be a father, there was so much to think about. It all seemed so unimportant when thinking about the future before, but now his head was swarming with every single detail about this life. In the long run, he didn't really care if the child was going to be an Aries or a Taurus or if it would prefer Soccer over football, but right now, the future was the focus of his mind. A child. . .wow. He wasn't fully used to the information, but every moment he thought about it, he got more curious about the unimportant things.   
  
He had never thought so hard in his life. Especially about the future. Gordo was the type of guy who dealt with life in the present. He had long-term goals, but he didn't focus his life on them.  
  
He barely noticed Lizzie as she got up and returned to the bed. He could barely believe himself when he heard himself ask, "When's it due?" He asked it in a small voice, so he wasn't sure that Lizzie had heard him, that is until he looked over at her, and saw that she was looking back, as if she didn't believe what he just asked.  
  
"Um," Lizzie said, clearing her thought, "February 24th."  
  
"Oh," Gordo said, not knowing what else to say. He felt better knowing at least a little more about the baby.  
  
Lizzie sat up, and watched Gordo as he fell silent after the question. She thought maybe he was starting to take interest in this baby after all. "Is there anything else you would like to know?"  
  
Gordo shook his head, "You have no idea how much I have been thinking about this since I thought of it, but most of the questions can't be answered until its born and has lived a little."  
  
Lizzie smiled, sympathetically, "I know how you feel," she said, and she looked away, "You know, we are going to have to talk about this eventually. Everything. I want to know what you are thinking and I want to tell you what I am thinking. Their should be more communication about this. I don't want this child to feel resented."  
  
Gordo sighed and smiled sadly at Lizzie, "I know we have to talk. I am ready to talk to you about everything whenever you are ready."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "Okay. We will talk at some point about everything, but I can't talk right now," Lizzie said, and a small tear flowed down her cheek.  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "I understand. You can take your time."  
  
"No," Lizzie said, "It's not that I am not ready. Actually, it is partially that, but its mainly because right now, I don't feel so good."  
  
"You still feel sick?" Gordo said.  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "It's just so hot down here and I feel like I am going to throw up."  
  
"I am sorry, Lizzie," he said, and he meant it sincerely, "Is there anything I can do to help?"  
  
Lizzie looked around, and shook her head, "No, I have a fan and I can't take any medicine. Thank you, anyway."  
  
"Well," Gordo said, "I don't know if this will help, but I am around, so if you need any help, I can help."  
  
Lizzie smiled, but not for long, as she felt herself about to explode, she ran into the bathroom and threw up in the toilet.  
  
Not knowing whether or not to follow her, he decided he would, and he entered the bathroom and grabbed a clean towel and handed it to her.  
  
Like it or not, Gordo thought, this was reality. Gordo's days of being a carefree adult were officially over. He felt bad about this change in his life, but on the other hand, he was beginning to feel bad about feeling bad. Life was just getting more difficult by the day, it seemed.  
  
He was no longer able to just take care of himself.   
  
~~~  
  
Hey! Piacere, here. I hope you liked this chapter. I promise this story will get a little more interesting. I will update as soon as possible, but if you get a chance, please review! I hope to update within the next seven days, though. 


	13. Tredici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Thanks for the reviews! Thanks for your oh-so-continuing patience with this story. The alternate ending for Je t'aime is taking me a little longer than I expected because of the planning, so please have patience with that because it might be yet another week or so before that is completely ready. Also, since so many people have asked for it, what I will probably end up doing is providing a link to it or something, so if someone reads it a year or so from now, they don't have to e-mail me. Also, sorry about the whole update in seven days thing. Obviously, that didn't work.  
  
In other news, I have an announcement. As some of you may know, my good friend is ottertheelephante, who is the author of No Place to Go, What I Like About You!, and also is the co-author of Love Letters (avec moi!). Anyway, she challenged me recently, and just for the sake of challenging her back, I have to say this: The next chapter of this story will be written by ottertheelephante and the second to next chapter of What I Like About You will be written by me. (She has to write the next one) Anyway, just thought you should know in advance, in case the next chapter has something wrong  
  
Chapter 13  
  
That night, when Lizzie was feeling a little better, Gordo went for a walk, giving Lizzie some time to herself. Lizzie thought at this point that it would be safe to call Miranda and talk to her.  
  
After the second ring, Ethan picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello?" He asked. He sounded as if he had been laughing.  
  
"Ethan," Lizzie said, "Can I speak to Miranda?"  
  
"Yeah, sure," Ethan said, and Lizzie waited a few seconds for Miranda to come on.  
  
"Lizzie? Hey!" Miranda said, "Hold on." Lizzie waited as she heard what sounded like a door shutting, "Okay, now I'm alone. So, how is it so far?"  
  
"Awful," Lizzie said, plainly.  
  
"Really? Why? I would have thought he would have apologized by now! What have you been talking about all day?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Nothing? You haven't said a word to each other all day?"  
  
"Well, hardly," Lizzie said.  
  
"Aw, Lizzie! Poor thing!"  
  
"No, it's okay. I want to be completely ready to talk to him. It will happen at some point, I am sure, I just don't think that day is today."  
  
"Lizzie, come on! This is a baby we are talking about! Another life! You can't just wait until after the child is born to talk about it."  
  
"I know. We'll talk about it at some point. Listen, the hardest part is over. I told him that I was pregnant, and now the ball is in his court."  
  
Lizzie heard Miranda sigh, "So, are you completely miserable over there?"  
  
Lizzie sighed, "Yeah, I really am. I mean, I feel sick and besides, it doesn't help that I have to communicate with someone I would rather not talk to at all to accomplish anything."  
  
"Talk to Gordo. You know he is sorry. He didn't mean what he said," Miranda said.  
  
"What are you? Gordo's conscience? I would like to believe that, but right now, I can't. Part of me really hates that boy, and yes, he is acting like a little boy."  
  
"Lizzie, stop being so negative. That is not helping the situation. Gordo loves you. You know that."  
  
"I love him, too. I mean, I really don't know how I feel about him. I would like to think that he is truly sorry for what he said and has completely turned his attitude around and looked at the positive out there. I am just not getting that vibe."  
  
"It may take time. Maybe you should ask him how he feels."  
  
"Shouldn't he be the one asking me that? I mean, I know how he feels."  
  
"No, you only know how he thought at the time. I bet you that he has thought about it since you told him, and I bet you by now, he is thinking about what he can say to you to show you that he is sorry."  
  
"Okay, fine. I will talk to him at some point. Would that make you happy?"  
  
"It would make you happier."  
  
Lizzie sighed, "Fine, but I am not sure how much longer I can stand the silence. I almost wish we were at the point where we could talk about things other than this baby. I don't want to ignore that, though."  
  
"Would you like me to talk to him?"  
  
"No, I don't want him to know that I am talking to anyone about this."  
  
Miranda sighed, "Lizzie, just do me a favor and don't wait too long. And, if you get a chance and if the timing is right, tell him that you love him."  
  
"But, that would be awkward."  
  
"I know, but sometimes, awkwardness makes things less awkward. It might even get him to open up a little bit."  
  
"I do love him," she said, more to herself, "I will never stop loving him."  
  
Just then, Lizzie saw that the door was about to open. Gordo was back from his walk. Lizzie didn't want him to know what she was talking about, so she spoke quickly, "Miranda I have to go. I'll talk to you soon. Bye."  
  
The door opened as Lizzie was hanging up the phone, "Hey," Gordo said, sounding happier than usual given the circumstances.  
  
"Hi," Lizzie said, and she sat on her bed.  
  
What Lizzie didn't know was that Gordo had been standing outside the door since the phone conversation started, and he heard the whole thing. He was happy and relieved to find out that Lizzie still loved him. He probably would have stayed out there for longer if she hadn't said those words.   
  
While he was out there, he decided that in order to accomplish anything with Lizzie he had to stop avoiding her.   
  
"Lizzie," he said, taking a deep breath, "at some point tomorrow, I think we should . . .go for a walk . . .together. . .and talk. . .if that's okay with you?"  
  
~~~  
  
I thought that would be a good set up for the next chapter by ottertheelephante. Anyway, in the meantime, if you have time, please review! 


	14. Quattordici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. This is piacere here. This chapter was written by ottertheelephante and it is totally my fault that it didn't get updated any sooner. I was waiting for my to finish updating hers so we could post it on the same day, but now I have finished her chapter and it is up to her when she should finish hers.  
  
Anyway, here it is. Enjoy it!  
  
Chapter 14  
  
The Next Day  
  
The next day, Lizzie got up early and went for a walk on the beach, while Gordo still slept. She agreed to talk with Gordo about the current situation, but now she had to think about what she was going to say. She felt so torn between her feelings because she wanted him to be a part of the baby's life as much as anything, but she also wanted the baby to feel wanted.   
  
After thinking about it for a while, she finally decided that she would hear what he has to say. If she let him speak, maybe it would give her more of an idea of what he wanted. She wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt when it came to the other night, but she needed to make sure there was no reason for doubt.   
  
Lizzie had to face it: she was stressed. Between worrying about the future of this unborn child and all the territory surrounding this, she felt overwhelmed. The strangest thing about all of this was as soon as she found out about it, she was seriously considering aborting it so she would never have to tell Gordo, but then she thought about it and how truly miraculous she was to have this open window of opportunities right in front of her. She always knew she wanted children, and maybe this was a sign that it was her time.  
  
Suddenly, however, as she was heading back to the hotel, she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and the pain was so sharp and so strong that she couldn't feel anything else. Before she could do anything else, she blacked out.  
  
~~~  
  
~Gordo~  
  
At around eight that morning, Gordo woke up to the sound of the phone ringing. He looked over at the bed and realized she wasn't there. He walked over to the phone beside the bed.  
  
"Hello?" he said, groggily.   
  
"Hola, Gordo! It's your ole friend Miranda. Is Lizzie there?"  
  
Gordo shook his head, "Nope. She must have gone for an early breakfast or something. Can I take a message?"  
  
"Sure! Lizzie's mom called about three hours ago."  
  
"Oh?" Gordo said as he rubbed his eyes, still only half awake, "What did she say?"  
  
"Not much actually. She wants Lizzie to call her to check on how she is doing."  
  
"Oh, that's nice," Gordo said, and then he thought about what she said, "Wait, does Mrs. McGuire know that Lizzie is pregnant?"  
  
Miranda chuckled, "No, she didn't sound like she knew. But you know Lizzie's parents. They will probably call again tomorrow, seeing as they don't have your number."  
  
"Oh," Gordo said, nodding his head and yawning, "Well, I will tell Lizzie they called. Thanks."  
  
"You're welcome," she said, "and don't even pretend like you are tired---the McGuire's called us before five in the morning. At least I had the decency to wait a few hours."  
  
Gordo rolled his eyes, "Bye, Miranda."  
  
Gordo hung up the phone and while he was tempted to go back to sleep, he decided he would get up for the day and take a shower.  
  
Gordo was in the middle of washing his hair when he thought he heard a knock at the door. It was faint, and water was blocking his ears, so he figured he was just hearing things, but when he turned the water off, he heard it again, as well as a telephone ring.   
  
He hopped out of the shower, quickly put a wet towel around his waist and opened the door. On the other side of the door was an older woman and a younger man, who looked like he was the hotel manager. "Uh, uno momento, per piacere" he said, and he rant to answer the phone. In the meantime, the two people let themselves in.   
  
Gordo picked up the phone, but no one was on the other line. Confused, Gordo hung up the phone and turned his attention to the other people in the room. "May I help you?" he asked.  
  
The older woman started rambling out unfamiliar Italian words in a frantic state. Gordo, who was still confused, looked at the younger man for assistance. The man nodded his head and said a few words to the woman that caused her to be quiet, then he turned to Gordo.  
  
"Uh, excuse me if I caught you at a bad time, signore," the man said in an Italian accent, pointing at Gordo's towel, "but you see, we have a little emergency."  
  
"What is it?" Gordo asked, starting to panic. The first thing he thought about was Lizzie.  
  
"Uh, well, I am sorry to be the one to tell you this, but that woman you were with was taken to the hospital this morning."  
  
"What??" Gordo said, at this point, feeling like he was going to have a panic attack, "Is-is she all right?"  
  
"Uhh, I don't know, but she did-how you say- black out on the beach. If you want, after you get dressed, we can take you to the hospital to see what is going on."  
  
The panicked Gordo nodded his head, "Okay. Just give me a minute, okay?"  
  
"Oh," the man said, "take your time."  
  
The man and the woman let themselves out of the room and Gordo quickly put some clothes on. A minute later, he was outside, where the man was waiting, "Uh, that woman-my mother-was the one who saw her on the beach, but since she does not speak English, she decided to get me. Now, she has to go to work."  
  
"Okay. Where is your car?" Gordo said, in no mood to chat right now. All he really wanted to do was see Lizzie and make sure she was all right.  
  
The man led Gordo to his car and they drove to the hospital.   
  
~  
  
As soon as they reached the hospital, Gordo ran to the hospital, but had to wait for the man to find Lizzie.  
  
Once the man finally came and asked where Lizzie was for him in Italian, they went to the area she was, but the doctors would not let him see her. After the hotel man and a nurse exchanged a few words in Italian, and the nurse left, the man turned to Gordo and said, "I have some good news and some bad news."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"The good news is that your wife and the baby are going to be okay!" the man said.  
  
Gordo let out a sigh of relief. He didn't even think about correcting the man in calling Lizzie his wife.  
  
"Wait! There is bad news," he said.  
  
"Uh, your wife is in a coma right now," he said.  
  
~~~  
  
~To be continued~  
  
~Okay, let me clear up a few things for you. First of all, before you even think about asking, this is not a dream. Second of all, like the man said, Lizzie and the baby will be all right. Third of all, I am not a doctor, so anything wrong with Lizzie is . . .how you say. . . made up by me. I don't know if this could happen in real life, and it probably can't, but I am going to go ahead and tell you now, this story isn't really about Lizzie having medical problems. It's more like the process of recovery. That might not make sense right now, but as this story goes on, it will become more clear. This story, like all my stories thus far, is going to have a happy ending. The title is "That's Amore" which means "That's Love" and it's going with the theme of love and how true love can overcome obstacles and in the end, what it boils down to is love. Similar to Je t'aime, but in a different way.~  
  
Also, for the record, although ottertheelephante wrote this chapter, we definitely had discussions about it, so I knew what was going to happen, I just didn't know how.  
  
Now that all the introduction to the story is officially over, and chapters have a plot, chapters should be coming out more frequently. My goal for now, though, is to finish the alternate ending of Je t'aime, which for the record, I will probably post on fanfiction.net after all.  
  
Review if you want, rant if you must. 


	15. Quindici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Thank you for the reviews! I appreciate all of them. For the record, I have been working very hard on the alternate ending and I am still working out a few details and everything but it should be out in the world sometime soon. I would like to say sooner, but you never know. I will be working really hard on it though. It is over 2,000 words right now.  
  
Again, let me stress to you that I am not a doctor. These symptoms could happen, but I am not sure about the outcome, so remember this and if you find anything wrong: at least I am not killing her off.   
  
Anyway, here is chapter fifteen. Enjoy it until I can write chapter sixteen.  
  
Chapter 15  
  
~Gordo~  
  
Gordo was in the waiting room trying to calm him down, but he felt anxious. The doctor would not let him see her and there was nothing he could do. He wanted to call Miranda and Ethan but suddenly remembered he didn't know their number. It was back at the hotel.   
  
Also, they were supposed to leave Taranto that day and drive up to another city. Obviously with Lizzie in the hospital, this wasn't going to happen. He didn't know what was going to happen, but for now, it looked like they were stuck in Taranto until Lizzie was healthy. At least, that is what he thought until the doctor came up to talk to him.  
  
"Uh, we are going to send Elizabeth to the International Hospital in Rome," the doctor said in broken English. The guy that drove him helped him translate.  
  
"Why?" Gordo asked, panicked to hear this news, "Is there something wrong?"  
  
"No," the doctor said, "We send all of the non-citizens with long-term problems there for convenience. Besides, people there speak English and can be more helpful."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "Okay. When are we going?"  
  
"Well," the doctor said, "Elizabeth will be sent in a plane as soon as tonight. I am afraid we are going to have to ask you to drive yourself up there. We don't have enough room in the plane for another body."  
  
Gordo sighed and sat down, "How far away is Rome?"  
  
"On a plane, it takes less than an hour. By bus or car it takes three or four hours. We are sorry for the inconvenience, sir."  
  
~~~  
  
That night, a plane came and flew Lizzie to the International Hospital of Rome while Gordo drove there in his car. He wanted to be with Lizzie more than anything, but he had to go by car. This would give him a chance to get everything from the hotel and check out.  
  
After eating hardly anything, at around midnight, he finally reached Rome. A place that brought back memories both good and bad and the place that would determine Lizzie's life.  
  
He drove up to the hospital feeling weak himself. He was hungry, so he went to the cafeteria and ate something. It was too late to see Lizzie anyway.. Luckily, the hospital had arranged it so he would stay at the nearby International Hotel.   
  
When Gordo entered his hotel room, he expected Lizzie to be with him. It was sad for Gordo to stay in a hotel room all by himself. Lizzie and Gordo weren't talking, but at least he would have to sleep in a room all by himself knowing that Lizzie was not safe.  
  
The vacation was not off to a good start. Nothing was right about this road trip. The thing that made Gordo feel the worst about it all was that they never talked about their future. Knowing that it might be days or weeks before Lizzie gets out of that coma was the worst. Knowing that he might have brought her to the coma with his comments almost did him in. He didn't know what he was going to do with himself if Lizzie wasn't okay. He didn't know how he could live without her. Sure, the doctors said she was okay, but what if she wasn't? What if she died before she ever listened to Gordo apologize? All these what ifs were popping into Gordo's head and he couldn't sleep very well.  
  
~~~  
  
The next morning, Gordo went to the hospital to check up on Lizzie. Lizzie still hadn't woken up from her coma and the doctors were beginning to worry. "It's not a big deal, but in cases like this, where it is caused by stress, usually the patient wakes up within the first twenty-four hours. This just means that she will probably wake up at some point today, just later than expected," and English doctor, Dr. Hines, told Gordo.  
  
"Is she going to be okay?" Gordo asked.  
  
"Of course she will be okay! Just give her time to rest and relieve some stress and everything should be fine."  
  
"When can I see her?"  
  
"Actually, you should be able to see her now if you want."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "I want to see her now."  
  
"Okay," Dr. Hines said, "then follow me."  
  
The doctor led Gordo to Lizzie's room, where Lizzie lay unconscious and hooked up to a few machines, "Maybe hearing your voice will help her."  
  
Gordo nodded his head and took a seat next to her. In the meantime, the doctor left the room.   
  
"Hi," Gordo said, not really knowing what to say first, "I guess we didn't get to talk yesterday after all," Gordo laughed a little, "and assuming things don't change between the two of us, this could be my only chance to talk to you, so please listen to me."  
  
Gordo sighed, struggling to find a place to begin. He decided if Lizzie needed to hear anything right now, she would need to hear him apologize, "The things I said the other day were horrible. I mean, of course I know what I want, which is to be with you. I have always assumed their would be children at some point, but I guess I always assumed that by the time that happened, we would be married and set with a career. I guess smart David Gordon over here forgot the difference between ideal life and reality. It isn't really that I don't care, because I do care. It was an unexpected surprise, but I think it is a good surprise. I wasn't ready for it, but I don't know if I will ever be ready for it. Lizzie, I love you more than anything in the world, and if you ever forgive me I can prove to you how much I love you and how much I will love this baby. I always planned on marrying you, but I wanted to wait until the timing was perfect with the proposal. I didn't know when that would be, so I brought the ring I got to Italy just in case. I've been carrying it around for a few months now, mostly because the timing was never perfect. But I guess, the timing never has to be perfect with anything. I guess what I am trying to say is that no matter what, I will never stop loving you and this child, planned or not, will always have a place in my heart. I know this doesn't make sense, but I mean it. You, me, and this child will make a perfect family, and you don't have to be worried about me not loving this child because there is no question in my mind—it will be loved. It was made out of love and it will be brought into this world with love. I am sorry for all the things I said. Please forgive me. I love you so much," he said and he put his hand on her hand, and leaned down. For the first time in quite a few years, Gordo was crying.   
  
Gordo eventually fell asleep in the chair next to Lizzie.  
  
At around two that afternoon, Gordo woke up and Lizzie was gone. Her bed was there, but she was gone. Gordo went out of the room to find a doctor. In the hallway, he ran into Dr. Hines, "Doctor! Where is Lizzie?"  
  
"Ahh! You didn't hear?" He said, smiling, "she woke up about a half an hour ago."  
  
"She did?" Gordo said, overjoyed, "Where is she? Can I see her?"  
  
"She was moved to another room. You can see her in a few minutes, okay?"  
  
"Is she okay?"  
  
"Well, other than one slight problem, she is pretty healthy. She woke up really hungry so I think nurses are feeding her now."  
  
"What's the problem?" Gordo asked, getting nervous.  
  
"Well," the doctor said, "Because of the coma's after affects, she has developed some sort of amnesia."  
  
~~~  
  
To be continued 


	16. Sedici

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Um, to answer a few of the questions or ponderings—I know that the longer someone is in a coma, the more serious the amnesia is, and I have no intention on making Lizzie's case of amnesia full blown "Who am I? What am I? Where did I come from? I don't remember anything at all!" because with only a day in a coma, that severe of a case is improbable. It will be more like acute amnesia, where most things are remembered, but the person with the amnesia forgets the tension, struggles, and setbacks of his or her past and has a little bit of confusion at times. Matt Damon's character had it in the Bourne Identity if that helps at all. Speaking of Bourne Identity, that takes place in Italy. Also, in While You Were Sleeping with Sandra Bullock, the doctor thought that Peter (the one she saved) had acute amnesia and Lucy (Sandra Bullock) dreamt of going to Florence . . .which is in Italy. Coincidental? I don't know. . .just something to think about.  
  
Yet again, I will remind you that I not a doctor. Yes, acute amnesia exists but I don't know the exact causes and effects.   
  
Chapter 16  
  
"What do you mean amnesia?" Gordo asked, reacting to this news, "Does she not remember anything?"  
  
"Well, not exactly. The nurses questioned her, and there were particular things she didn't remember, for instance, she doesn't remember being pregnant nor does she remember being married," Dr Hines explained.  
  
"Well," Gordo said, glad to hear that it isn't as severe as he imagined, but still distraught that she didn't remember some things, "she isn't married."  
  
"What?" the doctor asked, shocked, "But the doctor from the other hospital told us she was married. Is she engaged?"  
  
Gordo shook his head, "Not yet. I am her boyfriend."  
  
"Oh," the doctor said, looking at him with a mixture of disapproval and understanding. Gordo didn't feel comfortable when somebody looked at him like that, "That would explain why she doesn't remember being married."  
  
"Doctor?" Gordo asked, "When can I see her?"  
  
"That may be another couple of hours. We want her at some point to see familiar faces and see if that brings back anything, but for now, the nurses are seeing how serious her case is."  
  
"But she will remember people she knows, won't she?" Gordo asked.  
  
Doctor Hines shrugged, "It depends on who the person is. You see, she has something called acute amnesia, which means that Lizzie should remember mostly everything, and considering she wasn't in the coma that long, it should only last a few days or maybe a week."  
  
"So, what might she not remember?"  
  
"Well, if she is going through a hard time or struggling with something, she probably won't remember that. We are wondering if that might be why she can't remember being pregnant. Also, she might become confused."  
  
"When can she be released?"  
  
"In a few days, when we can be assured that it is safe. Now, advanced medical studies and chemists have developed drugs to help her memory along, but since she is expecting, we cannot give her these drugs. This just means it may take her a few extra days to remember everything. Until you are allowed to see her, I recommend that you notify her family of this condition and, if she knows anyone in Italy, see if they can visit and help her with her memory. They may want to wait a few days to visit because that would give Elizabeth time to adjust on her own. Come back in a couple of hours."  
  
Gordo nodded his head. He wanted to stay and wait, but the doctor assured him that the best thing he could do was make those phone calls and come back. Gordo went to get a quick bite to eat and back to his hotel. First he decided to call Miranda and Ethan, mostly because they would ask they knew the most and wouldn't ask many questions. Ethan picked up.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Ethan? This is Gordo? Is Miranda there?"  
  
"Yeah," Ethan said, "Do you want to talk to her?"  
  
"Actually, I want to talk to both of you. Can you get her on another phone or on the speaker?"  
  
"Uh, sure," Ethan said, "Hold on a second."  
  
A minute later, Miranda was on the line with Ethan, "Gordo, what is it?"  
  
"It's Lizzie," Gordo started, "She's in the hospital."  
  
"What??" Miranda said, "In he hospital? Is she okay?"  
  
"Yeah, she is fine. She fainted yesterday and was put into a coma and woke up today with something called acute amnesia."  
  
"Amnesia?" Miranda asked, "Does she remember anything?"  
  
"Yeah, Miranda, its only minor, but still. We were sent to Rome last night and we are staying here until it is okay for her to go home."  
  
"Oh my God, Gordo! Is there anything we can do to help?"  
  
"Well," Gordo started, "the doctor said that if anyone wanted to visit, it might help her with her memory."  
  
"Okay, so should we try to come tonight?"  
  
"No, come in a few days. I'll keep in touch with you and let you know what's going on. You might not even have to come."  
  
"Okay. Well I hope she gets better!" Miranda said, as if she was getting ready to leave, "Wait! Have you called her parents yet?"  
  
"Not yet. I was getting ready to call them. Why?"  
  
"Well, be careful what you say because Mr. and Mrs. McGuire don't know that Lizzie is pregnant yet," Miranda said, "and I am not sure now is the time to tell them."  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Gordo said, "Okay, I'll keep that in mind and I'll call you later. Bye!"  
  
"Bye!" Miranda and Ethan said.  
  
Gordo hang up the phone and started to dial long distance to Hill Ridge to call Mr. and Mrs. McGuire. Mrs. McGuire picked up, "Hello?"  
  
"Mrs. McGuire. This is Gordo," Gordo said.  
  
"Gordo! Aren't you in Italy?!" Jo said, "Is Lizzie making you call us?"  
  
"No," Gordo said, "Actually, this is about Lizzie."  
  
"Oh? Is she okay?" Jo said, more seriously.  
  
"Well, she is fine right now, but she fainted yesterday and was in a coma overnight and now has a slight case of amnesia."  
  
"WHAT?!" Jo asked, "Is she all right? Do Sam and I need to come over and take car of her? Oh my goodness! Is Lizzie going to be all right? Is she, Gordo?"  
  
"Yes, yes, Mrs. McGuire, she will be fine. She only has a minor case of amnesia and should be better in a few days. I just called you to tell you what was going on."  
  
"Well, thank you Gordo. Where are you?"  
  
"Right now we are in Rome."  
  
After a series of multiple questions from Jo and a "Oh, I wish Sam was home," every now and then, he finally said that he would call her everyday and tell her what was going on with Lizzie.  
  
After that phone call, almost two hours had passed and Gordo decided to go back to the hospital and check on Lizzie.  
  
When he got there, Dr. Hines said he could go in, so Gordo went to the room and saw Lizzie lying there, starring at the window. When she heard the door open, she looked over and smiled. Gordo was about to sigh in relief that she remembered him, until she said, "Hi. The nurses have told me about you. They say you are my boyfriend. Well, actually, at first they said that you were my husband, then they told me you were my boyfriend," she said, looking at him, with a little confusion in her face, "You look vividly familiar. What did you say your name was?"  
  
~~~  
  
To be continued. 


	17. Diciassette

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Also, four day weekends rock. Also, I have an announcement to make: ottertheelephante and I are working on another story. Well, we have an idea and part of the first chapter, anyway. Anyway, it will be under my name this time because the last story was under her name and also, this was mainly MY idea, which is why I got to announce it. Anyway, it probably won't be published until we either have a) completed Love Letters or b) have written the first three or so chapters. Anyway, I won't say anything about the plot, as it will come up, as we are closer to completing Love Letters, but I will say this, and this is pretty much a given: it's L/G.  
  
Anyway, thanks for all the reviews and patience you have. You are such wonderful people. Hug yourselves.  
  
Anyway, so the chapter is pitiful, but I need to move things along and there should be another update this weekend, so have patience.  
  
Chapter 17  
  
Gordo didn't know whether to feel relieved or heart broken at Lizzie's words. To the friend in him, it was almost as if he was shot to death, but considering what was happening to them, he felt a sense of relief. For the first time he could talk to her completely neutrally to her. It was almost as if someone was giving him a second chance to redeem himself and say the right thing. Obviously, she would eventually remember all the awful things he said, but maybe when she remembered, she would also consider the things he was planning on saying to her now.   
  
Gordo had sculpted a plan in his head for Lizzie. In this plan, he was going to get Lizzie to fall in love with him again and do all he could to convince Lizzie that he was ready for a challenge and a change in his life. He wouldn't change himself really, but he would fine-tune some of the things he said. He didn't have this all thought out perfectly, but he knew what he had to do, and he was willing to do it.  
  
He felt sorry for Lizzie. Here she was, suddenly more naïve than she was before and little did she know, she hated her boyfriend right now. Whatever he said could make every difference. He could make up her past completely, and she would not know any better, so she would believe it.   
  
"You seem tense," Lizzie said, observing Gordo, "Is there something bothering you?"  
  
Gordo looked at Lizzie and smiled a little and shook his head, "Nope. Everything is okay with me. The more important question is how are you?"  
  
Lizzie looked down at her blankets, somewhat nervous, "I am fine. It feels kind of weird being here," she said, scrunching up her nose, "I mean, for as much as I remember, I feel like I am forgetting a lot more, you know? I mean, for example, I woke up and someone told me I was pregnant. I don't remember that and I don't remember why this happened."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, happy to see that she was opening up to him. He sat down on the chair next to her bed, "Yeah, I can only imagine how weird it must feel."  
  
"Yeah, and I got really panicked when the doctor told me my husband was here. Of all things to forget, I couldn't imagine forgetting a wedding, so it made me feel a lot better knowing that I wasn't married," Lizzie paused for a second, "although I can't imagine what my parents said when I told them I was having a baby out of wedlock."  
  
Gordo half smiled, it was kind of cute watching her thing out loud about everything as she was trying to reach an understanding of who she was exactly, "Well, don't worry about your parents. They don't know yet."  
  
Lizzie's eyes widened, "What? I mean, with the memories I have, I remember telling my parents everything."  
  
Gordo couldn't help but laugh, remembering Lizzie telling Gordo there was a lot she didn't tell her parents. Of course, this was when they were in college and Lizzie admitted to Gordo that she was on birth control, so it was kind of ironic, "Well, you tell them a lot of things, but you don't tell them everything."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head and then suddenly, her eyes widened as she looked at Gordo with a mixture of worry and shock, "They think I'm still a virgin, don't they?"  
  
Gordo shook his head as he laughed even harder, "No, we live together, so I think we can assume that they know you have had sex."  
  
Lizzie blushed and looked down at her hospital gown. Gordo could tell she was embarrassed and it reminded him of the old Lizzie. Lizzie finally looked up again and said, "So, tell me something about myself."  
  
"Like what?" Gordo said.  
  
"Like, what's my favorite color? What do I do? What am I like?" Lizzie said, with eagerness in her voice.  
  
"Well, what do you remember?"  
  
Lizzie sighed and smiled as she looked up at the ceiling, "Well, I remember my mom, my dad, my brother, my house, Miranda, and other random things, like the color of my bathroom tiles and my prom dress."  
  
"You wouldn't happen to remember your prom date would you?" Gordo asked, seeing if he sparked any memory. He was her prom date both times.  
  
Lizzie shrugged, "I don't know," she said, discouragingly, "I mean, I keep thinking if I think about things long enough, they will suddenly come to me, but it hasn't worked yet."  
  
"Well," Gordo said, "Do you have any memories about certain stories in your life?"  
  
Lizzie tilted her head and paused, "Yeah," she said, smiling, "Now that you mention it, I remember a few things. I remember walking up the steps in my blue gown at high school graduation and almost tripping."  
  
Gordo smiled, "All right, that's a start. What else?"  
  
Lizzie shrugged, "I really don't know. Then again, I've only been awake for an hour, and the doctor said the majority of my memory should be back in twenty-four hours. The rest of the stuff could take a few weeks, though."  
  
Gordo gave a forced smiled. Twenty-four hours, huh? What if she remembered him by then. Oh God, he though, what if she remembered the fight?  
  
"In the mean time, tell me more," she said.  
  
"Like what do you want to know?"  
  
"Well, tell me what you can."  
  
"Well," Gordo thought, "Oh! Okay, your favorite color is pink, followed by baby blue. You teach kindergarten back at home."  
  
Lizzie rolled her eyes, "Tell me something interesting or juicy. Are you responsible for my current state?"  
  
Gordo looked at her, slowly starting to panic, "What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean, you are the baby's father, right? I mean, I wasn't artificially inseminated or anything, was I?"  
  
Phew, Gordo thought, "Oh, no. I'm the father."  
  
"Cool," Lizzie smiled, looking into Gordo's eyes, "You know, I think I could get used to the idea of that."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "So can I." There, he said something positive. It was a step toward what he was aiming for.  
  
Lizzie held her stomach, "And what do you do for a living?"  
  
"I'm a director."  
  
"Ahh," Lizzie said, nodding her head, "A regular Spielberg, are we?—Oh my God! E.T. That was the first movie I ever saw, wasn't it?"  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "Yep, I thing it is."  
  
Lizzie smiled, she seemed to be proud of herself for remembering something, "Okay, what else. Maybe I'll remember something else. How long have we been dating?"  
  
"Since high school," Gordo said, "we were best friends before that."  
  
"Wow," Lizzie said, "So we've known each other practically our whole life?"  
  
Gordo nodded.  
  
"How long have we lived together?"  
  
"Since senior year in high school."  
  
"How long is that?"  
  
"Two years this September."  
  
"Have we ever talked about marriage?"  
  
Great, another complicated question. It was an innocent question, but it was so hard to answer, "We've talked a little bit about it."  
  
"Do I want to get married?"  
  
Gordo nodded, "Yeah, I think you do."  
  
Lizzie looked up to him, and timidly asked, "What about you? Do you want to get married?"  
  
~~~  
  
Look for chapter eighteen really soon. In the mean time, I'd appreciate it if you'd review and tell me what you think. 


	18. Diciotto

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Thanks for the reviews. Seven is my lucky number and that definitely made my week.   
  
Chapter 18  
  
"Do I want to get married?" Gordo repeated, dreading this question.  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "Yeah, do you?"  
  
How was he supposed to answer this? "I don't know" would get him in trouble and "yes" might not be the total truth.   
  
Lizzie, noticing he wasn't answering the question and was choosing silence looked around, "Did I say something wrong?"  
  
"No," Gordo shook his head, "In fact, that's a good question," he gulped and he took her hand, "You know, I do hope to get married to you someday so we can he a happy family, but I want to make the engagement. . . a surprise."  
  
"Oh," Lizzie said, nodding her head, "I see."  
  
Gordo smiled pathetically. He was taking the coward's way out and he knew it. Now, poor Lizzie was expecting an engagement from him any day now when he still wasn't ready to propose. This children business was messing him up.  
  
"So," Lizzie said, changing the subject, "How long have we known each other?"  
  
Gordo smiled in relief. This was an easy question, "All of our lives."  
  
"Really?" Lizzie said, tilting her head and squinting her eyes. She looked as if she was about to say something, but she decided against it.  
  
"Yep. We have been friends for a really long time."  
  
"Oh, so we're just friends. . .with benefits?" Lizzie asked, confused, as if she was still trying to figure things out between her and Gordo.   
  
"No," Gordo said, "No, not at all. I mean, we're best friends and everything, but we are also dating."  
  
"Phew!" Lizzie said, "Because I'd would have felt really awkward asking you some of the questions I asked before if we were just friends. So, how long have we been dating?"  
  
Gordo sat back and tried to think, "Almost nine years."  
  
"Wow," Lizzie said, "That's a long time." She gazed into his eyes, beginning to think he was becoming familiar in some way, "How did we start dating?"  
  
Gordo grinned at the memory, "Well, actually, we were in Rome, and you kissed me. Then, when we got back, we talked about it and well, we started going out."  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, but said nothing. She was trying hard to sort all the chaos going through her head. She thought for a few seconds, and all the sudden gasped. She looked at Gordo and put her hands over her mouth.  
  
Gordo's eyes widened with worry, "Are you okay?"  
  
With tears in her eyes, she looked at him and said, "Oh my God! I think I remember you."  
  
Gordo's eyes widened, "Really?"   
  
"Yeah," Lizzie said, and she took her hand down, "Confused Guy."  
  
Gordo looked at her, confused, "Pardon?"  
  
Lizzie pointed at Gordo and a proud smile crept up on her face, "You were Confused Guy!"  
  
"Confused Guy?' Gordo repeated, he knew it sounded familiar, but why it was so familiar was beyond him. At least, he thought, she was smiling. That was a good sign.  
  
"Yeah. . . middle school. . .newspaper. . .sabbatical. . .," she said and she looked at him and gasped, "You were 'Confused Guy' weren't you?"  
  
Gordo thought for a moment as he tried to link all the words she said. He didn't doubt her memory, but he didn't know the connection right away, and then all the sudden he remembered and his eyes widened and he pointed back, "You knew that all along?"  
  
"Knew what?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"You knew that I wrote that last letter in your column and you never told me?" Gordo said, clarifying his last statement. He wasn't sure whether to blush or rejoice because she remembered something about him. He decided this was a good thing.  
  
Lizzie paused for a moment, thinking about it and slowly nodded her head, "I think I did know about it."  
  
"Ha!" Gordo said, getting up from his seat and hugging her tightly, "Lizzie, this is so great! You remember something about me!" he said and without thinking, he kissed her on the lips. When he pulled away, he watched as Lizzie touched her lips and said nothing. Her expression was blank as she starred at him.  
  
"Sorry," Gordo said, "I didn't mean to scare you like that," he started to pull away from her so he could sit back down, but some force stopped him. Lizzie's hands were on Gordo's neck. Gordo noticed this and looked into Lizzie's eyes, confused. Lizzie was starring at him, too, searching his eyes. Then, as if it was like a dramatic pause in a movie, where none of the characters knew what was going to happen next, Lizzie pulled Gordo closer to her and, although she hesitated for a second right as their lips were about to collide, she kissed him. At first, it was a small kiss, showing both timid and hesitant qualities. Then, as Lizzie got more comfortable, the kiss deepened and within a few seconds, the kiss was so passionate and so emotional, neither of them wanted to stop.   
  
For different reasons, they were confused. For Gordo, he definitely didn't expect this type of reaction because Lizzie wasn't supposed to remember him and here she was kissing him. For Lizzie, she was confused because she felt like she barely knew Gordo, but kissing him felt so right that she didn't want to stop. Here she was, lying on a hospital bed, making out with a stranger. He was such a good kisser and his lips felt so good with hers. Also, stopping would mean awkward pauses, and Lizzie hated awkward pauses.  
  
For Gordo, the passion he felt with this kiss was so needed for him because of their recent dispute. He was kissing her for the first time in days. He returned the passion with equal force and before he could stop, he let his tongue slip into her mouth and she accepted it without hesitation as she did the same. He missed this with Lizzie.  
  
After what seemed like hours of kissing, which in reality was only a few short minutes, they were interrupted by an, "Ahem."  
  
Automatically, they ended their kiss and Gordo pulled back into his chair and the two looked up to find the nurse. Gordo blushed, not able to look at Lizzie right now, fearing she remembered something he didn't want her to remember or had regrets. Also, he expected the nurse to be angry, but instead she didn't seem upset at all. She apologized for interrupting and then told Gordo that visiting hours were over and he had to leave.  
  
A very large part of Gordo wanted to stay there with Lizzie and continue their kiss, but he knew it would be better for him to go. That way, he could think about the events that happened and how he should handle him. After quickly saying goodbye but not leaving her with a kiss, he left her room. He sighed as he closed the door and as he was walking down the hallway to the elevator, the doctor stopped him, "Ah! Mr. Gordon! Just the person I was looking for."  
  
"Hey, Dr. Hines," he said, shaking the doctor's hand.  
  
"Hi. I have good news for you, chap," he said, "We just got the afternoon test back and it seems as if Lizzie is progressing well. I think, assuming she has most her memory back and all things go well with the morning tests, that we can release her from the hostpital."  
  
"Really?" Gordo said, "That'd be great!"   
  
Dr. Hines nodded his head, "Yes, you will still have to keep her in the area for a few days, but probably no more than a week. It all depends on when she regains her full memory."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "Okay, I'll be back tomorrow morning."  
  
"Okay, see you then," the doctor said, walking off.  
  
~~~  
  
Lizzie watched as Gordo left her room. The nurse that interrupted them was still there and handed her dinner, "I see you've got some of your memory back, have you?" the young, red-headed nurse commented. She had an Irish accent and was smiling.  
  
Lizzie, however, shook her head, "Actually, I only remember a little bit about him."  
  
"Come again??" the nurse said, "Ha! With what you two were doing when he walked in, I got the impression that you two were madly in love with each other."  
  
"I think we are," Lizzie said, "But I don't know. There is just something so familiar about him and yet something so mysterious."  
  
"Well," the nurse said, "If he's mysterious, I certainly wouldn't mind finding out HIS mystery, if you know what I mean."  
  
Lizzie blushed at the nurse's implication. Here she was, helplessly in love with a guy she hardly knew. She was falling in love with this guy and she couldn't even remember his name. Did he even tell her his name? All she knew was that he was "Confused Guy."  
  
~~~  
  
To Be Continued 


	19. Dicinove

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. I was thinking about it, and you know what this story needs? A really long chapter? Well, not terribly long, but long for me maybe. This chapter right here is NOT the really long chapter that I have in mind, however, it is the introduction into the chapter that I hope to make long. Anyway, thanks for the reviews. They were great. I should be doing homework, but sometimes, sacrifices have to be made. 7 and 17 are my lucky numbers.   
  
Chapter 19  
  
~Gordo~  
  
Gordo never felt the way he felt when he walked into his hotel room. After picking up something to eat, he went to his hotel. He needed to think about things. Those "things" he were thinking about all had to do with Lizzie. With all the confusion he felt then, there was so much more emotion. He never doubted his love for Lizzie, but if he ever needed a reminder of why he loved Lizzie so much, his feelings were proof right now.   
  
As hard as it was to watch Lizzie treat him like he was a stranger and as hard as if was to answer some of the questions she asked, watching her do this made him fall in love with her. The visit wasn't like he expected. He half expected her to be cold or uncomfortable, but she wasn't. Of course, Gordo knew coldness was not Lizzie's natural character, but he definitely wasn't prepared for the questions, and if he thought he wasn't prepared for the questions, he most certainly wasn't expecting for her to kiss him.  
  
A certain wave him as he walked home that night. It was something about walking alone in Rome in the summertime that causes one to think. He remembered doing this once the first time he came to Rome, when Lizzie was busy rehearsing with Paolo. Instead of going straight to the hotel that evening, something provoked him to walk around and take in some of the air.   
  
To Gordo, everything in Rome was almost like new. He didn't remember his way around at all, but as he started walking and the sun started to set, he somehow found his way home and found part of himself in the process.  
  
Since when did life get so complicated? Since when did every single thing you say make a difference? Gordo watched some of the people around him as he walked past the Trevi Fountain. If one traced everything back, this is where Lizzie and his relationship began, in Rome. Would it be where it ended?  
  
~~~  
  
~Lizzie~  
  
"Ms. McGuire, don't you think it's time to get some rest?" the redheaded nurse said to Lizzie.  
  
Lizzie, who was staring out the window looked over at the nurse and smiled. She had been so deep in thought that she had no idea how long she had been looking or what she was looking at. When she looked over at the nurse, however, she saw something very comforting with her. Maybe Lizzie was just looking for someone to talk to, but something seemed very friendly about her. Lizzie sighed and asked, "What's your name?"  
  
The nurse, who had been busy cleaning up the food tray, looked up and laughed a little, "Shannon Doyle," she said, pausing a little, "And what is yours?"  
  
Lizzie was taken aback slightly, "You don't already know?"  
  
Shannon laughed a little, "Of course I know. I just thought it was a polite thing to ask, though. Besides, with all this memory loss, you'd be surprised how easily you will forget."  
  
Lizzie sighed, "How did I end up here?"  
  
"A helicopter took you in from somewhere south of here. I don't know how you ended up in Italy, though. I presume you flew in on a plane, but who knows. Some people come in by boat, and, well, not you, but some people come by train or boat," she said.  
  
Lizzie shook her head. Although she liked the nurse's personality, that wasn't what she was asking, "No, that's not what I meant."  
  
"Then what did you mean?"  
  
"I mean, how did I get to where I am now? How did I lose my memory and feel so displaced in the world and so confused about everything?"  
  
The nurse walked closer to Lizzie and sat down in the chair next to her, "What are you so confused about?"  
  
Lizzie thought for a moment. Was she usually the type of person to simply pour her heart out to anyone who would listen? "A lot of things. I mean, well, that guy that was in here before, the guy that I have supposedly known all my life and been in love for almost half of it---I hardly recognize him. I mean, I don't even remember his name, but when he was with me, I felt something was there."  
  
"Well, that's not too uncommon. You are in love with the lad, so its natural to feel some sort of feelings for him, even if you don't remember him."  
  
"Yeah, I know that," Lizzie said, "But there was something about his presence that felt completely new to me. I mean, I don't remember him at all, but him being here today somehow made me fall in love with him, but it's almost like he's a perfect stranger. Why do I love this person so much when I feel like its wrong?"  
  
"Hmm," Shannon said, nodding her head, "I see. You know, I'm certainly no expert on love or anything, but maybe you should go with these feelings. I mean, if they feel so natural, and if he loves you back, it wouldn't hurt to at least try, would it?"  
  
Lizzie shrugged, "I don't know. There's a very large part of me that wants to open up to him and give him my full heart."  
  
"What about the other part?"  
  
"The other part is just unsure. It's telling me I'm crazy to jump into this."  
  
~~~  
  
~Gordo~  
  
Had it really been nine years since they started dating? No wonder Lizzie asked him about marriage. Maybe he was being irrational with the "being ready" thing. All things considered, he had been living with Lizzie for the past year and that is similar to marriage. Maybe he wasn't ready to process the thought of them growing up. As painful as the days when they were sneaking around and worrying about college were, they represented so deep and meaningful, that when the days are gone, what happened to them? Gordo was still living in the world that he could live in, with no major responsibilities. Maybe he feared that marriage meant growing up completely. Like many, Gordo wanted to preserve as many things in his youth as he could, and at this point, marriage was the only thing that allowed him to do this. It was the only thing left.  
  
Was he being unreasable, though? While he didn't feel selfish for not wanting to get married, he felt something was wrong with this picture. He had a career, an apartment he shared with Lizzie, and he took care of himself. He was as independent as he could be with Lizzie living with him.  
  
Maybe that was what was wrong with him, though. Maybe what he thought he was content with wasn't what he wanted at all. He did, eventually, want to get married to Lizzie and he always knew that, but he didn't think the thought would have to occur to him so soon. The truth was in the hospital he just came from: he was in love with an amazing woman who was carrying his child. This child that, unless Lizzie has a change of heart, he won't be able to be involved with. Besides his parents, he could loose the only two people he loves.   
  
Love. . .the process was quicker than he ever imagined it would be. . .the love of a child. He didn't know that someone who wasn't even born and he didn't know anything about would have such an affect on him. He loved Lizzie with all his heart, but this baby. . .this baby was a part of him. Not only did it carry half of his DNA, but it was something that represented the love he shared with Lizzie.  
  
Never in his life was he prepared for anything like this. He always thought babies followed marriage, not the other way around. He never even gave this thought consideration. Sure, he knew his life wouldn't turn out perfectly, but this was such a huge thing. Bringing another life into the world was another huge step he didn't think he was prepared for.  
  
As Gordo almost reached his hotel, he came up with a conclusion. Maybe it was time to face reality. The greatest things in life are surprises and unplanned. This baby thing was certainly a surprise and it was also unplanned. From now on, his life would change, but it can only be changed for the better. It was time to face the reality of certain situations and prove to himself and other people that he could do this. He also decided that he should give marriage more consideration. He had a lot to do and a lot to prove, but he had to convince himself that he could do it. In years to come, he was sure he would learn a great deal about responsibility, and he decided that now was the time to start showing responsibility. Now was his time to gain a new perspective and now was his time to start convincing Lizzie was he was wrong before . . .with or without a memory.  
  
~~~  
  
The nurse left shortly afterward, and Lizzie tried to go to sleep, but she couldn't. She was trying to remember more about the one she was supposed to be in love with, but she couldn't remember anything. It seemed like she could remember everything in her life but him.   
  
After a while, she finally decided that thinking about it wasn't doing anything, so maybe not thinking about him would spark more memory.  
  
Little did she know that not thinking about him was too much of a challenge? Her mind was too busy trying to figure out why she was so in love with him and it was driving her crazy that she didn't even know his name. Why was remembering him such a challenge for her? It was almost as if he only existed in her dreams up until that afternoon.   
  
But, even if she only met him that afternoon, there was still something about him that made her kiss him. To Lizzie, that was the greatest kiss she remembered, and even though she didn't remember him, she felt like there was something familiar with the way he kissed, that it only seemed right kissing him. When she pulled him in for that kiss, the expected him to pull away, but was honestly glad he didn't because not only did she feel comfortable, but it also gave her a little more assurance. It this was the man who was responsible for her getting pregnant, she felt like was a good thing. The time she spent with him was almost perfect.  
  
The only thing that broke the perfection was the way he acted about the topic of marriage. Despite her amnesia, Lizzie somehow knew that she wanted to get married. It just felt like a natural feeling to her that seemed like a childhood dream. With him, though, he didn't have much to say. Maybe he never planned on marriage in the first place. Maybe he liked the way they were. But if he liked the way they were so much, why were they having a baby?  
  
Maybe his comments on marriage meant nothing, but for some unbeknownst reason to Lizzie, those are the comments that stuck to Lizzie that night.   
  
~~~  
  
Like I said, this is the introduction of what is to come. The next chapter should be fairly long, but I have no idea when it will be ready. I thought this chapter was important to show the feelings of Lizzie and Gordo and sort their thoughts a little. Anyway, tell me what you think and I will be working hard on chapter twenty, but I have no idea when it will be ready. Please review if you have the time, though. 


	20. Venti

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE I'll just cut to the chase. Here's chapter twenty.   
  
Chapter Twenty  
  
The next day, Gordo woke up, got ready and went to the hospital hoping to pick up Lizzie. He was more nervous today because he was afraid Lizzie's memory would be restored, and this is something he wasn't ready to deal with yet. While he didn't have a thought out plan or anything for this or anything, he thought he would use the time he could to try to get her to fall in love with him. That way, when her memory of him did come to her, at least she would have this to consider.   
  
It was weird because throughout the entire night, it was as if his whole life had passed him by, focusing in on the moments he spent with Lizzie. Looking back, he really did take those years for granted and if he had the chance, he would have done a lot of things different. If he could erase time, none of this would have ever happened like this. He would have asked her to marry her before she moved in and they would be a married family and this baby would simply add to their happy family.   
  
He made up his mind that he would try not to focus on that today. Thinking about it always made his thoughts drift down a negative spiral and he always thought of the worst thing that could happen. Lizzie could break up with him over this. Once she gets her memory back, she could flee away from him and never see him again. He would be a father who didn't know his child. His child would be a bastard, never knowing his father.   
  
Thinking about all of this made him realize how precious life is. Gordo never really thought about it, but, he takes a lot of things and people for granted. All of the sudden, so many dreams popped up for this child, like it having the best parents ever who never fought and gave their child everything it needed.   
  
It also made him think of his own father. He wondered how his father reacted when he learned that he was going to be a father. He knew he was a surprise to his parents, but he wondered if they went through the same thing he was going though with the fears and everything. But it was different. The difference between him and his parents was that his parents were married, he wasn't.  
  
He arrived at the hospital in the middle of the morning and spoke to the doctor. The doctor told him that Lizzie could be released as soon as some papers were signed. Right as Gordo was signing the last of the papers, he saw Lizzie walk out of her room in her hospital clothes. She saw him and smiled. Gordo smiled back, relieved to know that she was happy. He finished up the papers and walked to her. He looked her in the eyes and after pausing for a few seconds, he smiled, and gave her a hug. "Ready to go?"  
  
Lizzie looked down, "Yeah, but do you have any clothes for me? I don't want to wear these," she said, referring to her hospital outfit.  
  
Gordo grinned, letting go of her, "Yeah, there are some clothes in the car."  
  
"Good."  
  
Lizzie and Gordo left the hospital. Once they were in Gordo's rented car, Gordo stated talking to her, "So, do you think your memory is coming back?"  
  
Lizzie nodded her head, "Yeah, I think most of it is back."  
  
"Really? Gordo asked, getting somewhat nervous. He gulped, "Do you remember me at all?"  
  
Lizzie smiled, pitifully, "Not really," she said, pausing, "and believe it or not, of all things I want to remember, I want to remember you the most. Why is that so hard?"  
  
Gordo shrugged, "I don't know."  
  
"Well," Lizzie said, thinking, "Do you mind telling me a little more about yourself? Like, where you grew up and where you went to school?"  
  
Gordo smiled. It was so sad watching Lizzie go through this. He couldn't imagine going through memory loss, "Well, I, like you, grew up in Hill Ridge and went to Hill Ridge Junior High and High School. You did too. We graduated together and went to college together."  
  
"And now we live together, huh?" Lizzie said as she took this all in. What she really wanted to know was his name. Once she knew his name, she figured she would remember something else about him. She was afraid to ask him, though, and afraid to hurt his feelings.  
  
"Yeah," Gordo said, distantly. Wow. He and Lizzie had been through a lot together. How did they make it this far in the first place?   
  
~~~  
  
Once they got back to Gordo's hotel room, Lizzie went to the balcony to admire the Roman view, "So this is Italy," she said, "This is Rome."  
  
Gordo nodded his head and smiled, standing behind her and watching her watch the outside world. He wondered what she was thinking about and how much she remembered of him at this point. He was so flustered the day before, he was worried that he forgot to tell her his name. Lizzie closed her eyes and smiled as she enjoyed the warm summer Italian breeze and took deep breaths.   
  
Gordo looked at her, and he could honestly say that she was happy. After hesitating for a minute, he wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned in to kiss her neck. She started to close her neck, so Gordo backed away. He was worried that she didn't like him anymore or that something was wrong, "Lizzie," he said quietly, letting go of her, "If this is too weird for you, please tell me. Just because we are together, I know you don't remember me, so if that kiss yesterday was weird for you, tell me. We can take this as slowly as you want."  
  
Lizzie stood there silently for a moment to think. She didn't know why she closed her neck when he kissed it because it was comforting to have him so close to her. Then, slowly, she shook her head. She had to speak up and say what was on her mind before she forgot. She turned to him and spoke, as tears started streaming down your face, "The most frustrating thing about this is that I don't even think I know your name."  
  
"Okay," Gordo said, putting his hand on her shoulder to comfort her, "That's okay."  
  
Lizzie shook her head in protest, still crying "No, it really isn't, though."  
  
"Why?"  
  
Lizzie took a deep breath, "Because part of me is convinced that if I know your name, that's all I'll need to know to be completely content."  
  
Gordo pulled her into a hug, feeling somewhat guilty, "My name is David Gordon. Most of my friends call me Gordo."  
  
"Gordo," Lizzie repeated as she pulled away from him and smiled, "I like that name. It's catchy."  
  
"I like it, too. You picked it out, you know," he said, "When we were kids."  
  
"Well, Gordo," Lizzie said as she played with his shirt, "I know this may sound crazy considering I hardly know your name, but the more time I spend with you, I fall in love with you."  
  
Gordo smiled, glad she was no longer crying, "I love you, too, Lizzie," he said and he hugged her. When he heard those words from her, he felt like he was walking on Cloud Nine.   
  
Lizzie broke off the hug, though and looked into his eyes, "You were the first guy I ever made love to, weren't you?"  
  
Gordo nodded and kissed her on the nose, "and hopefully the last."  
  
Lizzie smiled as she blushed and pulled him into a kiss. It looked like she didn't want to take it slowly anymore as Lizzie and Gordo continued to exchange a series of kisses and Gordo guided her to the bed, Lizzie said, "Gordo, please make love to me."  
  
That's when Gordo stopped everything.   
  
He got off of Lizzie and sat up, "Lizzie, you don't really want to make love to me right now."  
  
"Why not?" Lizzie asked, confused, "I thought you loved me."  
  
"I know," he said, "and I do, but right now, it isn't fair."   
  
"What," she said, getting ready to cry again, "What are you talking about?"  
  
Gordo got off the bed and straightened himself up. As hard as it was to restrain his beautiful Lizzie, he knew that he was doing the right thing, "Lizzie," he sighed, "You have to trust me on this one. I love you with all my heart and it is always hard for me to say no to anything you ask, but right now, I can't do this. It can't be like this. You have to give it time."  
  
"But I'm ready," she said.  
  
"I know," Gordo said, it was killing him to see her cry, "But I'm not sure you really are."  
  
Lizzie looked at him, still lying there on the bed. Gordo couldn't stand to look at her any longer, "Lizzie, I have to go."  
  
"Are you coming back?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"Of course," he said and he took his hotel key and left the room.  
  
Once the door was closed, he leaned against it and sighed heavily. That had to be the toughest thing he had to do, but he knew that he was doing the right thing.  
  
After a few seconds of just standing there, he decided to go for a walk and decide what to do.   
  
At first, he thought he wanted to keep the truth away from her because he didn't want to lose her, but the more time he spent with her, the more he was tempted to tell her the truth because then he could tell her what he thought now about it. The truth the old Lizzie knew was ugly, but the truth Gordo knew had changed.  
  
He didn't know when, but at some point that afternoon, he lost track of time, as he got lost in his thoughts. He walked through most of the city of Rome and finally decided in order for something to happen, he had to make it happen. While he wasn't ready to tell her what was going on before she fainted, he knew it was time to start proving he had changed, because she wasn't going to figure it out by herself and when she finally did figure out what was going on, this could only help him.  
  
One of the places he walked to that afternoon in Rome was a store. It wasn't a drug store, grocery story, clothing store, luggage store, candy story, or just any store. It was a store he had never set foot into his whole life. It was a store that sold great things and it was a store that could very possibly change his whole life. He went into that store a confused man and came out with everything clear, and a ring to prove it all.  
  
He placed the ring in his pocket and headed back. Maybe he wouldn't give the ring to Lizzie that night, or in the next week, but he knew he was going to give it to her. If not for marriage, he would give it to her for the child. That way, the child, whether it was a boy or girl, would know that it had a father that offered his mother a ring at one time.  
  
A few hours after he left his hotel, he returned, and it looked as if Lizzie hadn't moved since he last saw her. She was still on the bed, wearing what she was wearing before, but only this time, she had fallen asleep.  
  
Gordo placed the ring in his suitcase and took a shower. After he took a shower and got dressed, he gently woke Lizzie up, "Lizzie are you hungry?"  
  
Lizzie opened her eyes, and as soon as she saw who it was, turned her body away, "No, I'm not hungry."  
  
"Lizzie, baby," Gordo said, stroking her hair, "You have to eat something."  
  
"I ate breakfast this morning at the hospital," she mumbled.  
  
"I know, but you have to remember that you are eating for two now," he said, and he had to admit, it felt weird saying that to her.  
  
After a few moments of silence, he thought he heard her crying, "Lizzie, are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah," she said, "Never felt better. I mean why wouldn't I be?"  
  
"Please eat," Gordo pleaded.  
  
"I feel awful," she said.  
  
"You'll feel better if you eat something."  
  
"I feel fat," she protested.  
  
"You're beautiful," he said, "and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Come on, let's go eat and we can talk."  
  
"Talk about what?" she said, turning around to face him.  
  
"Talk about. . .us," he said simply, smiling at the love of his life, "Come on."  
  
Lizzie reluctantly agreed to do this and Gordo helped her up from the bed and she excused herself to take a shower and wash her face. While Lizzie was in the bathroom, Gordo noticed there was a blinking red light on the telephone, indicating that there was a message.  
  
Gordo went to check the machine, thinking it was either Lizzie's parents or Miranda, but to his surprise it was his mother.  
  
"David, this is your mom. How are you? Listen, I just got off the phone with Jo McGuire and she has decided to fly to Rome with Sam because of Lizzie's health, and I know this may be a little strange, but your father and I were talking, and since this concerns the health of our future daughter-in-law as well as the mother of our future grandchildren, we have decided that we are coming, too. All four of us are coming together on a flight that should land on Friday. I told the McGuires that you would be happy to pick us up from the airport. I love you David and I can't wait to see you. Bye."  
  
After Gordo finished listening to the message, he had to listen to it again, just to make sure he wasn't in some nightmare. He had to call his parents and tell them that was a bad idea. He had to talk them out of coming and convince the McGuires that Lizzie is fine. He decided to start with the McGuires. He completely forgot to keep them notified about the situation and he left them in the dark. He called them up.  
  
"Hello?" Jo answered.  
  
"Mrs. McGuire? This is Gordo."  
  
"Gordo!" she said, and in the background, he could hear Jo yelling for Sam. He rolled his eyes as he heard someone pick a phone up.  
  
"Gordo? How is she? Is she alright?" he asked.  
  
"She's fine. She's out of the hospital and her memory is almost completely back," he said.  
  
"Good," Jo said.  
  
"Does that mean we don't have to fly all the way to Rome?" Sam asked.  
  
Before Gordo could say anything, Jo blurted, "Sam! This is your daughter we are talking about! Of course we are coming over to see her!"  
  
"Actually, you don't have to go. I can take care of her by myself. I promise I'll take care of her."  
  
"Nonsense, Gordo! We wouldn't hear of it. You've done enough already! We can't get a flight until Thursday night, but we'll be there on Friday morning. Your parents are coming too."  
  
"I know, I heard," he said, "But really, she's fine. You'll be wasting your money if you come here."  
  
"No we won't! Even if she has her memory back, any time with Lizzie is the complete opposite of a waste of time."  
  
Gordo gave up. It looked as if he had no other choice. The parents had made up their minds and he couldn't talk them out of it, "Well, I can't wait to see you," he said, lying.  
  
"We're looking forward to seeing you, too, son," Sam said and they all hung up the phone and as Gordo was dialing the number to his parent's house, (he figured he might be able to talk his parents out of coming at least) he heard the shower turn off and the curtain open. He knew he had to be quick. Finally, after around four rings, his mom picked up.  
  
"David, it's so nice to hear from you," she said.  
  
"Hey, mom," he said, "How are you?"  
  
"I'm fine. I'm looking forward to seeing you in a few days, though. We figured we would book rooms at the same hotel as you and you and Lizzie could have your own room, your father and I could share a room and the McGuires could share a room."  
  
"Mom," Gordo said, "I don't mean to be rude, but why are you coming all the way to Rome?"  
  
"Because we want to help in any way we can with Lizzie. The poor girl needs all the support we can give her. Besides, we can spend time with our only son in Rome. . .a place where your father and I haven't been since our honeymoon."  
  
Gordo rolled his eyes. He knew there was some other motivation or excuse to come there. At least, he thought, they might be out of his hair and do their own thing.  
  
Gordo didn't have time to say anymore, as he saw Lizzie come out of the bathroom. He didn't want her to know anything about this yet, "Mom, I have to go. I love you."  
  
He hung up the phone before his mom could say anything. He felt a little guilty because he knew she would lecture him on hanging up, but he figured he could blame it on long distance charges or something.  
  
Lizzie stood there. She was fully clothed, in jeans and a t-shirt, with wet hair pulled back in a bun. Nonetheless, in Gordo's eyes, she looked stunning.  
  
"How's you're mom?" she asked, with little enthusiasm.  
  
"She's great. She asked about you."  
  
"Oh," Lizzie said, examining herself in the full length mirror, "Do you think these jeans make me look fat?" She touched her stomach with her hands as she looked at Gordo.  
  
"Nope," he said, "They make you look great."  
  
"Whatever," she said, in a disbelieving tone, "Ready to go?"  
  
"Sure," he said, grabbing his keys and wallet. He opened the door and Lizzie and Gordo were out of the hotel.  
  
That night, Gordo took Lizzie to a casual Italian restaurant. People in Italy don't usually eat until after ten o'clock, so the restaurant wasn't very crowded. It was only eight o'clock. After pulling Lizzie's chair out for her and sitting across from her, he could tell that there was a little tension. He also felt tension because he had to tell her about their parents. He felt bad for the event that happened earlier that day, but it made him feel a little better about himself knowing that he did the right thing.  
  
Slowly, he took her hand, "Lizzie, are you okay?"  
  
Lizzie looked at him and then down, "Yeah, I'll be okay. It's just. . .I mean," and her voice lowered a little, "after I thought about it, I completely understand you saying no, but at the same time, it made me fell, well, you know, it made me feel a little uncomfortable in a way. Like, maybe I wasn't doing something right or you don't want me anymore."  
  
"Lizzie," he said, squeezing her hand a little tighter, "Are you crazy? I love you so much, Lizzie. Don't ever think I don't want you. I didn't want to do anything because I thought it would be so soon."  
  
"I know that now," she said, "But I don't know. I guess I just feel so self-conscious lately because I know I'm going to gain weight and it makes me feel ugly and fat."  
  
"Lizzie, you are a lot of things, but you are neither fat nor ugly."  
  
"I know, I know!" she said, "But it's weird. I feel so alone in a way. I can't believe I'm telling this to you, but I'm scared."  
  
"What do you mean?"   
  
"I mean," she said, taking a deep breath, "Sometimes I wonder if I am ready to have a baby. I'm twenty-three years old. Have I lived enough life to where I am ready to settle down and have a child?"  
  
~~~  
  
A/N: Well, kiddies. What do you think? 


	21. Ventiuno

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Well, I guess fifteen days isn't the worst possible gap of time to update a story. Thanks for the reviews.  
  
Chapter Twenty-One  
  
Gordo gulped. Did he really just hear what she just said correctly? This whole time she was displaying such confidence and determination about this baby, but doubts? Lizzie? The thought never crossed his mind for more than a second. Among feeling relieved that he wasn't alone in all of this and all the other emotions, he now felt selfish. Selfish for not thinking about Lizzie as much as he should have and selfish for feeling alone.  
  
"Gordo," Lizzie said, "Do you think I'm ready?"  
  
"Honestly?" Gordo said, daring to repeat his biggest mistake he made thus far by going over the same territory that got him into trouble. This time, he knew where he was going with what he was saying. For once, he could say the right thing and it would be the honest thing.  
  
Lizzie slowly nodded her eyes, looking deeply into his. In her eyes, he saw confusion and as if they were searching for something. Gordo took a deep breath as he reached across the table for her hand, "Lizzie, I've been thinking about this lately…A lot actually and I've been having the same doubts as you have, and in all honesty I don't think we're ready."  
  
"Oh," Lizzie said, looking down and saying nothing.  
  
"But," he said, "The more important thing to think about isn't whether you're ready or I'm ready or all of that, but it is WILL we be ready."  
  
Lizzie looked up, confused, "What do you mean."  
  
"What I mean to say is that this was a surprise," he said, "A very big surprise, in fact, but that doesn't mean that it isn't a good surprise."  
  
"Yeah," Lizzie said, as if something still bothered her, "But what about us? I mean, are we ready for this much responsibility?"  
  
Gordo shrugged, "I don't know. But we won't know until we try it."  
  
"Gordo, what about us? When we have this baby, we will be losing our freedom."  
  
"Lizzie," Gordo said, smiling, "We'll be losing a lot of things, but don't you think it will be worth it when you have the baby?"  
  
Lizzie thought for a minute about what he said and started to smile, "It is a miracle, isn't it," she said.  
  
Gordo nodded. Talking to Lizzie and seeing that gleam in her eye made him see it for what it was: this was what life was all about.  
  
If only Lizzie knew the irony of it all. If she knew that three days before Gordo was saying just the opposite of this.   
  
After dinner, Gordo and Lizzie went for a small walk around the city. Hand in hand, they walked places they hadn't walked in ten years. Lizzie remembered a lot of Italy and although it was a slow process, Lizzie was remembering Gordo and all the things she loved about him.  
  
Once they reached the hotel and were in their room, Gordo was reminded about their parents. He could tell that Lizzie was tired, but knew he should tell her before he forgot.  
  
"Uh, Lizzie, there is something else we need to talk about."  
  
Lizzie, who throughout the whole night was thinking about the miracle of life in the back of her mind, wrapped her arms around Gordo's shoulders and smiled as she closed her eyes, "What?"  
  
"Our parents are coming to Rome on Friday to see us."  
  
It took a second for that thought to process through Lizzie's head, but once it did, Lizzie immediately pulled her head back and looked at Gordo, "What??"  
  
Gordo sat on the bed and Lizzie sat next to him, "Our parents! They heard about you and want to see how you are doing."  
  
Lizzie looked at Gordo with sad puppy eyes, "You mean I won't have you all to myself anymore?"  
  
Gordo smiled, touched by her comment, "Sorry, Liz. Believe me, I tried to talk them out of it."  
  
"Oh well," Lizzie said, standing up and getting dressed for bed, "it was fun while it lasted. Do you think we should tell them that I'm pregnant?"  
  
Gordo's eyes widened. He hadn't thought of that aspect. "I don't know. I'll leave that one up to you."  
  
"They'll probably try to encourage us to get married," Lizzie said looking down.  
  
"Yeah," Gordo said, pretending to look discouraged as well.   
  
"What do you think we should tell them?"  
  
"Lizzie," Gordo said, "We can tell them whatever we want to tell them and it won't matter. As long as we love each other, we can get through this."  
  
"Gordo," Lizzie said, looking down. Gordo could tell she was nervous, "Do you think we will ever get married?"  
  
Gordo's heart jumped a beat. He wanted nothing more than to drop down at that very moment and present her with a ring, but knew he should wait until she had her full memory back, "I don't know."  
  
"You don't?" Lizzie asked, as her voice cracked.  
  
"Lizzie," Gordo said, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He knew that he couldn't keep it from her anymore. He knew that he had to tell her the truth, "there is something we should talk about."  
  
"Oh?" Lizzie asked, looking up into Gordo's eyes. They were the eyes of innocence and the eyes of truth. Looking into those eyes made Gordo feel weak and full of betrayal.  
  
Gordo sat Lizzie on the bed and sat next to her and took her hand, "What's going on?" Lizzie asked, with thoughts and possibilities floating around her brain. What was he about to say that made him look so serious?  
  
"Lizzie," he repeated, trying to come out with a way to say the hardest thing he could ever possibly say, "Before you went to the hospital, we talked a little about us and…" Gordo found it hard to continue what he was going to say. He felt like he was going to cry, but he couldn't. No, he had to do this. He squeezed Lizzie's hand tightly and Lizzie looked down.  
  
"Gordo, you can tell me anything. You know that, right?" She said, hugging him. When she released she looked into his eyes yet again and waited.  
  
"Lizzie," he said, trying this once more. He had to tell her the full truth, "before you went into the hospital, you and I had a discussion on marriage and I told you…" he started, but her eyes kept staring, "I told you that…I think we should wait to get married after the baby is born."  
  
Gordo watched as Lizzie sighed and could tell it was of relief, "Gordo," she said, smiling, "that's okay. I understand."  
  
Gordo nodded his head, but was ashamed of himself. He knew that what he said was a lie. What was worse was that he couldn't find himself to tell the truth.  
  
What was worse was that Lizzie leaned in and kissed Gordo while they were sitting on the bed. The guilt Gordo felt as she kissed him felt worse and worse and he felt guilty for kissing her back, "Gordo," she said pulling away from him, "I love you more than you can ever imagine. I want nothing more than to be with you."  
  
Lizzie kissed him again and that night, Gordo felt guiltier than he had ever felt before. Lizzie and Gordo made love that night in Rome. Gordo knew from then on that he could never turn back and change time and he could never tell Lizzie the complete truth. He let the guilt get the best of him that night and with every kiss and every touch, it hurt him inside to know that it was only a matter of time before Lizzie knew the truth. 


	22. Venti duo

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. I do what I can to update as soon as possible. But, my ADD mind is trying to learn Italian and German while still trying to remember everything she is supposed to be learning in school, like French, while keeping up with the Spanish she learned three years ago because this mind is going to go to Spain this summer and doesn't remember much from her four years of Spanish taking. And still, somehow, English confuses me. Molto gracias pour the geduld. However, since this week is Spring Break and I actually have No Place to Go, (um. I suppose that's a plug for a certain fan fiction by a certain elephante. You owe me.) I will be working on this and my other stories. Thanks. Piacere.   
  
Chapter Twenty-Two  
  
The next morning, Lizzie woke up refreshed and feeling more confident than she did the day before. Last night was special for Lizzie because she now felt a deeper connection with her beloved Gordo and that added more comfort in being with him as well.  
  
At this point, Lizzie felt like she knew everything about Gordo. With her memory almost completely recovered and with what he told her, once again, she had the feeling that she had known him for a long time.  
  
Gordo was still asleep when Lizzie woke up. Lizzie arose from the bed they shared and looked out of the window to observe that once again, the day had brought beauty and the weather had brought sunshine. She smiled as she looked forward to spending the day with her Gordo. She wanted to take full advantage because she knew that the next day, her parents were coming to visit her.  
  
After a few minutes, Lizzie finally drew herself away from the window and headed to the bathroom to take a shower. As the warm water hit her, Lizzie closed her eyes and reflected on her memories with Gordo. She thought of their first kiss, their first dance, and every kiss and dance thereafter and couldn't keep herself from smiling. She was in love…and to her, the feeling felt like it was the first time in her life.   
  
After her shower, Lizzie stood in front of the mirror as she got dressed with a brand new feeling about her body. After yesterday, she convinced herself that she wasn't getting fatter or anything like that. No, in fact, today, she looked at herself and thought, "Wow. I am carrying another life! This is amazing." To be completely honest, she woke up high on life, and no drugs or fumes could bring her to this special level. It was a mixture of love, happiness, and being comfortable with herself and Gordo. Nothing, she felt, could bring her down.  
  
What Lizzie didn't know was Gordo's side of the story. After Lizzie fell asleep the night before, Gordo tossed and turned, regretting so many things about the day before, and especially the night. Gordo felt guilty before they made love because he had so many opportunities to tell Lizzie the truth of what happened and yet he didn't take proper advantage of those opportunities. He didn't feel too guilty, though, because as the day went by, he thought as long as he didn't do anything with her that could hurt her in the future or ruin what they had, he could wait another day or two. But after last night, he did do something that would hurt her when she found out the truth and this could potentially ruin what they have in the future. Gordo felt as if he failed himself. He didn't expect the night before to happen, as he stopped that from happening that afternoon, but he did. And once again, he wished he could erase history. But he couldn't. He was trapped.  
  
Gordo barely got any sleep the night before and didn't feel like getting up. No, getting up would mean facing the enemy. He was weak and as last night proved, couldn't fend for himself. He couldn't bring himself to tell Lizzie one tiny detail, and thusly, he felt screwed.  
  
That morning when Gordo heard the water run from the shower, all Gordo wanted to do was transport himself out of there. That way, he could show up a few months from now, when Lizzie figured out what was going on, and forgive him. He hated that feeling, but he couldn't deny that feeling.   
  
Gordo got up, got dressed and got a few of his things together and left a note on the dresser for Lizzie when she got out.  
  
"Lizzie, I have to take care of a few things. I'll be gone all day. I love you, Gordo"  
  
Just like that. Gordo left Lizzie with some money and fled from the room. He felt horrible, but he felt like it was better than being with her and carrying the guilt. At least this way, Gordo wouldn't have to look at her while he was carrying this immense guilt.   
  
Gordo drove away from that hotel that morning with tears in his eyes. Since when was he so weak that he had to run away from everything as opposed to dealing with this. He was a coward who had nowhere to really go or anything to do, so he drove. He didn't care if he got lost. In fact, he almost wanted to get lost and take a wrong turn. At this point, he had taken so many wrong turns recently; maybe another wrong turn would somehow be a right turn. Or, at least right for him.   
  
If he were anyone else in this situation, they would handle it a lot better. They wouldn't feel like they needed to run away from everything and avoid anything. No, they would handle it a lot better. Gordo was also beginning to think that Lizzie deserved someone better than him. No, she didn't really want to marry someone with the likes of him. She needed someone better suited and better prepared.  
  
Gordo drove on and on and only stopped when he had to. He had no idea where he was or where he needed to go, but this road trip was his only hope. He needed to rethink everything, especially after last night. It because incredibly crucial with what he said from then on, but he didn't know what to say.   
  
Before he could come up with any answers, however, Gordo suddenly found himself reaching the French-Italian border. He still had no idea what he could possibly do or say to Lizzie to make everything okay again. He figured at this point, it wouldn't hurt to try a different country to help him decide. So, before he knew it, Gordo found himself crossing the border into France. It didn't seem real as he handed the official his passport, but it was and to Gordo, it was his only hope.  
  
~~~  
  
When Lizzie was getting dressed in front of the mirror, she didn't notice the note or the lack of Gordo on the bed. She was so caught up in her own feelings that she didn't notice the note until she went to get her brush. She noticed the note and didn't know what to think. What did Gordo have to do that was so important that he couldn't wait for her?  
  
With no time specified on the note as to when he would return and no number to reach him with, Lizzie didn't know what to think.   
  
All she knew was that she wouldn't be spending this beautiful Italian day with her beloved Gordo.  
  
Her beloved Gordo fled to another country. 


	23. Venti tre

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. I am trying to update everything, and today I did quite a bit of updating. It was fun. Will I make it to 100 reviews?  
  
Chapter Twenty-Three  
  
~Gordo~  
  
It was mid-afternoon and Gordo was trying hard to figure out what to do with his life. He didn't intend of fleeing to another country, it just happened. He didn't plan on staying there very long, either. His parents would be coming the next day and that wouldn't be fair to Lizzie.  
  
Gordo stopped by a café near the border and sat outside. The sky was beautiful. Before this, Gordo felt as if he was in a place in his life where he was content. For him, this trip had become a journey, but mentally and physically. He went where he never planned to go and he did things he never wanted to do and any time he wanted to, he could tell the truth.  
  
But he couldn't tell the truth. Not now. It was too late.  
  
He spent so much time thinking about everything that he almost forgot what the two were angry about in the first place. Oh yeah, Gordo remembered, Lizzie was angry because Gordo wasn't ready for a family. He wasn't ready to commit to marriage.  
  
But he was.  
  
He stuck around the café for another hour or so before deciding to head back to Rome. He didn't know exactly how to get there, but he figured if he made it this far, he could make it again back home by morning.  
  
~~~  
  
~Lizzie~  
  
Lizzie spent most of the day resting. She didn't want to go anywhere because she wanted to be there when Gordo got home. She turned on the TV, but nothing fancied her interest. So she got out a book and started to read. She wasn't sure when, but at some point while she was reading she fell asleep.  
  
As Lizzie fell into a deep slumber, a dream started to emerge. Actually, it wasn't really a dream as much as it was a memory. This had happened to her a lot as she regained her memory and helped her restore some of the specific events in her life. It seemed very clear as Lizzie slept and very lifelike.  
  
Gordo was the main character in this memory. He was the main character in a lot of her dreams, but this one seemed different.  
  
They were in a place that looked vividly familiar and it looked recent. She also saw herself in the image. It looked romantic, in a bedroom, and the two of them were talking.  
  
*~*~*~  
  
"Do you ever think about our future, Gordo?"  
  
"What do you mean? Do you mean my future and your future, or do you mean OUR future?"  
  
"The latter one."  
  
Gordo sat down and said, "Yeah, all the time, Lizzie. I mean, how can I not?"  
  
"Well, where do you think it is headed?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"I think," Gordo started then he thought for a moment, "I am very happy were we are now."  
  
"So you don't want to get married and have children?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"Get married? Of course I want to get married, I just want to be able to support us before we get married."  
  
"But we can afford it now," Lizzie said.  
  
Gordo nodded his head, "Yeah, but what about a house. I mean, I assume you would want to move into a house when we get married and houses cost money. I don't want to be in debt or anything."  
  
"Okay," Lizzie said, "What about the other thing?"  
  
"What other thing?"  
  
"What about children? You want children, don't you?"  
  
"I don't care if I have children," Gordo said.  
  
"You don't care?" Lizzie asked.  
  
"No, I don't. I mean, as long as I have you with me all my life, I am set," Gordo said.  
  
"You never told me you didn't want children before," Lizzie said.  
  
"It isn't that I don't want children; I just really don't have an opinion," Gordo explained.  
  
"Well, I want children. What do you think of that?"  
  
"Well, if it is what you want, it is what I want," Gordo said, trying not to start an argument.  
  
Lizzie cried, "Really? So now you want children?"  
  
"Lizzie, I don't care!" Gordo exclaimed.  
  
""I thought you knew I wanted children!" Lizzie said.  
  
"I thought you knew I didn't care!"   
  
"Well, I didn't"  
  
"I am sorry. Now you know. Listen, I would love to have children some day, but I don't think I am ready for children right now. Give me a few years, okay?"  
  
"You mean, you might want children in a few years?"  
  
"Yeah," Gordo said.  
  
"But not now?"  
  
"Nope," Gordo said, "I am just not ready for that."  
  
Lizzie wiped a tear streaming down her face and sat down on the bed, "I am sorry, Gordo. I didn't mean to make an argument about this. I just wanted to see where we stood."  
  
"Good," Gordo said and he hugged Lizzie, "Because for a minute there, I thought you were going to tell me that you were pregnant." He laughed lightly at the thought.  
  
Lizzie started to cry again.  
  
"What's the matter, Lizzie?"  
  
"Gordo," she said, and she turned to look at him. She then stood up and headed for the door, "I am pregnant."  
  
~*~*~*~  
  
Lizzie shot up at the memory and breathed in and out heavily.   
  
No.  
  
No.  
  
No.  
  
NO!  
  
That was just a dream, wasn't it? Gordo would never say anything like that? Would he?  
  
All the sudden, Lizzie felt really insecure. She thought she remembered everything, but when she tried to remember, she couldn't remember how she told Gordo she was pregnant.  
  
It seemed so real, what he said, and Lizzie was afraid that it was.  
  
No wonder he didn't want to get married. No wonder he didn't want to make love to her---wait what about last night?  
  
Lizzie had all these hallucinations as she tried to put everything together. All she really wanted was Gordo. But now she wasn't sure. If he was going to come in and tell her that she was having a nightmare and there was no truth to that dream, then, well, frankly she wouldn't trust him.  
  
No, that was the truth. He lied to her. He took advantage of her and didn't tell her what he should have.   
  
Lizzie was about ready to faint when she was putting this all together, but the phone rang, which caused her thoughts to be disrupted.  
  
"H-hello?" Lizzie asked, feeling sweat dripping off her forehead.  
  
"Lizzie? It's me, Miranda," the voice on the other line said.  
  
Lizzie sighed, although she didn't feel relaxed. Maybe there was some logical explanation for all of this, but Lizzie couldn't come up with it. "Hi, Miranda," she said.  
  
"So," Miranda said, "Do you remember everything?"  
  
Lizzie gulped. She was pretty sure she did before she fell asleep, but now she wasn't so sure, "I don't know."  
  
"Do you remember me?"  
  
"Yes," Lizzie said, "I remember you very well."  
  
"Well, that's good."  
  
"Miranda," Lizzie said, feeling brave. She had to know this for sure, "How-how did Gordo respond when I told him I was having a baby?"  
  
Lizzie could hear nervous breathing on the other side of the line, "What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean," Lizzie said, shutting her eyes and determined to find the truth, "Did he tell me that he wasn't ready for marriage? Did he tell me he wasn't ready for children?"  
  
There was a pause as Lizzie waited for a response, "I don't know," Miranda said, "I wasn't in the same room."  
  
"NO!" Lizzie screamed, feeling at this point like the whole world was lying to her, "I know you know something. I can tell that you know something. Just tell me."  
  
Miranda sighed, "Where's Gordo?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"Did he tell you anything?"  
  
"No," Lizzie said, "And now I don't know what to believe."  
  
"Lizzie," Miranda said, trying to level with her best friend, "Yes, Gordo was unsure about marriage and family when you told him about it, but he might have changed."  
  
"Miranda," Lizzie said, as tears flowed. She felt like her love for Gordo was dying and she was on a high earlier today that was slowly dropping, "I remember what he said. He hasn't changed. You don't change that much in three days."  
  
"You should really talk to Gordo about this."  
  
"No," Lizzie said, "I don't ever have to talk to Gordo again."  
  
Lizzie slammed the phone back to hang it up as she sat on the bed and cried for a few more minutes. Lizzie was absolutely furious with Gordo and she was pretty sure, especially after he used her the night before, that she would never be able to forgive him.   
  
All Lizzie wanted to do was go home.  
  
That night, after thinking about it for a while and seeing that Gordo showed no sign of return, she packed her things together and wrote Gordo a note, explaining what she was doing.  
  
"David Gordon,  
  
I remember everything, even the things you thought I would never remember. After giving it a lot of thought, I have decided that I am going home for the rest of the summer. It's probably better health wise for me anyway. I loved you and I thought I wanted to start a family, but seeing as you aren't ready, I guess I'll just have to raise the child all by myself. Good bye, David. Have a nice life.  
  
Lizzie."  
  
Lizzie made up the bed and placed it on the pillow and took all her things and was set to leave…  
  
That is, until the phone rang.  
  
Lizzie almost didn't want to answer it, but decided she would, just in case it was her parents or someone.  
  
But it wasn't her parents.  
  
It was Gordo.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
I'll try to update as soon as possible. Have a nice weekend. 


	24. Venti Quattro

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Well, I made it past 100 reviews! Yay for me! This is a cause for celebration. Will you settle for chapter twenty-four?  
  
Also, I'm working on a new story that I probably won't publish until I've completed this story. Anyway, check my bio for more details and the link to see the prologue of the story. Tell me what you think!  
  
Chapter Twenty-Four  
  
~Gordo~  
  
When Gordo realized that he probably wouldn't make it back to Rome until sometime in the middle of the night, he figured he owed it to Lizzie to call her. In his point of view, he thought it would be a little awkward, considering he just up and left that morning, but he thought she would understand. He didn't, however, expect it to be quite as awkward as It was.   
  
It was Lizzie's turn to know something that he didn't know. It was his turn to get kicked in the face.  
  
Gordo dialed the number and was beginning to think he dialed the wrong number, as telephone systems were different than those in America and it was easy to make a mistake. He was about to hang up when someone did finally pick up. To his relief, it was Lizzie.  
  
"Hey, Lizzie," he said, trying to sound as cheery as possible.  
  
"What do you want?" Lizzie asked coldly.   
  
Gordo thought her tone was a little strange, but still didn't have any suspicions that she knew something, "I'm sorry I left this morning like that."  
  
"Yeah, well, I guess I understand. First, you tell me that you don't want a family and then I develop amnesia and you take advantage of me and worse, you lie to me."  
  
Whoa. Gordo was not expecting this when he picked up the phone. Was this some sort of nightmare? No, because this felt to real, even if it was on the phone, the worst imaginable had happened, "Lizzie?" he finally said, making sure she was still on the line and he hadn't just thought this up.  
  
"What?" Lizzie said, harshly.  
  
"Are-are you okay?"  
  
"Dammit, Gordo! What do you think? Don't play dumb with me. I know you don't want this child. Or what? Is there anything else you forgot to tell me? Are you having an affair? Gordo?"  
  
"Lizzie…let me explain!" It was lame, but it was the only thing Gordo knew what to say. He wasn't prepared for this to happen. Not like this. He thought about a lot of things in France, like how to tell her about this, but what he didn't think of was how to react if she found out.  
  
"Explain what? The part where you aren't ready for a family or the part where you slept with me knowing what happened before I was in the hospital? Gordo, you took advantage of me last night. How do you think that makes me feel?" Lizzie said, starting to cry, "Or did you forget to ask me how I feel about it, like you always do."  
  
"No! That's not it. Lizzie, please! Let me explain. You have no idea how much this had bothered me. I had every intention of telling you, I really did."  
  
"Gordo, I don't want to hear it, okay? The only reason I picked up this phone was because I thought it might be my parents or Miranda. You are the last person I want to talk to."  
  
"I'll be home in a few hours. When I get there, we can talk about all of this and clear this up!" Gordo said, desperately. He'd never felt so powerless in his life.  
  
"No, Gordo. I've had it! You've lied to me and I don't think I can trust you."  
  
"Lizzie,"  
  
"I'm going home tonight."  
  
"Lizzie, please—wait, what?"  
  
"I can't take it here any longer. I want to go home and work this out with my own family," she said, trying to calm down, but there was still a cold tone in her voice.  
  
"I'm going home with you, then!"   
  
"No! Gordo, I don't want that. You stay here or go back with Miranda and Ethan. I don't think I can handle you right now."  
  
"Lizzie," Gordo said, still not ready to give up, "I can't let you do this. Not by yourself. Now, please, I really think we should talk about this before you run off home."  
  
"Gordo, I don't want to talk to you right now."  
  
"Please? Your parents are coming tomorrow morning and are already on the plane probably. I'll be home in a couple of hours and I promise you that after you hear what I have to say, you won't be disappointed. Please, Lizzie, just give me a chance to explain this."  
  
"Gordo, you've had days to explain."  
  
"I never found the right time."  
  
"Ugh," Lizzie said, sounded disgusted, "Is there ever a right time with you?"  
  
"Lizzie—please. The least we can do is talk about this. I am the father of this child and I want you to know what I think about this."  
  
Gordo could hear Lizzie sigh loudly from the other end.  
  
"Lizzie, before this accident, you and I agreed that we would talk about this whole thing. I've been ready for this talk for a few days and I think we owe it to our unborn child to talk about this and set the record straight," Gordo said, hoping that she would take this into account.  
  
He could hear her crying from the other end, "Fine," she said, giving in, "I'll stay. But I'll make this clear that I am not staying for you. I am staying for my parents and this child."  
  
"I know, and I appreciate that. I'll see you in a few hours. I love you."  
  
Lizzie didn't say anything to that. Instead, she hung up the phone, so Gordo was really talking to a dead end. Gordo sighed as he hung up the phone. He walked back toward the rental car and got in, but before starting the engine, he leaned on the steering wheel and took a deep breath. How did he get here in the first place?  
  
~~~  
  
I realize this isn't the longest chapter ever, but I have every intention of having another chapter up this weekend. In the meantime, please review and tell me what you think. 


	25. Venticinque

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE. Sorry for the prolonged absence. Junior year is raising me up with all these things and I am trying hard not to fall or loose my balance.  
  
Chapter Twenty-Four  
  
How did he get here in the first place? He repeated in his mind, feeling sorry for himself. Oh, yeah, he thought, he couldn't do anything right in the first place.  
  
"Please," he said, looking up to the sky in hopes that someone would hear him, "Please, if this is a dream, I've had enough. I've learned my lesson and I promise that I won't ever make these mistakes again. Someone pinch me so I can wake up and get on with my life."  
  
But no one pinched him. This wasn't a dream and he had to face whatever he had to face in order to prove to Lizzie that he wasn't the jerk that he was beginning to think he was and that he wanted to be with Lizzie forever. He wouldn't give up.  
  
He started the car and started heading south to Rome. He got out of France within the hour and by then, it was getting dark. He took a short break at a restroom and realized that his parents were probably boarding that plane as he was thinking. He sighed, if only they knew what they were coming to Rome to face.   
  
That was why he had to fix everything before they came. He could see it now: he leaves for the airport to pick up Lizzie's and his own parents and Mr. McGuire sits in the front seat with him and smiles and calls him thing like "old sport", unbeknownst to Sam that not only did he knock up Sam's unwed daughter, but he also potentially ruined the best thing going for him in his life. As soon as they got to the hotel, Lizzie would pull the silence act and act like nothing was happening, but Jo would be able to tell. She would push it out of Lizzie and then everyone would turn on Gordo. He knew he had it coming no matter what.   
  
He spent the rest of the time trying to think of what to say to Lizzie that would miraculously allow her to forgive him, but no ideas were coming up in his head. Nothing could prepare him for what he was about to face.   
  
~~~  
  
~Lizzie~  
  
Lizzie tossed and turned, but couldn't find herself to fall asleep. For the first time since all of this started, she began to question herself. Was she being unfair? Heaven knows, everyone makes mistakes and says something in their lives that they don't necessarily mean. Maybe Gordo had realized what he said was a mistake and was trying to make up for it and learning to accept it.  
  
Lizzie sighed in the bed. What was she going to do? She's seen movies like Look Who's Talking and knew that single parenthood would be tough. She would have plenty of help from people around her, but she wanted support from Gordo. Acceptance was not what she needed. Support and optimism was what she needed. Maybe Gordo needed time and she was going through a stubborn phase.   
  
Okay, she learned to accept that issue for the time being. Now for the next problem: the fact that he lied to her and used her. What was that about? One of the most important factors of a relationship is being able to tell the truth. Why couldn't Gordo tell her all of what was happening, and why did he let her fall for him all over again?  
  
This frustrated Lizzie and she began to cry. The frustrations, however, didn't come from the fact that Gordo lied and ran off as much as the fact that she realized that she did love Gordo and completely fell for him and was scared her emotions could break them apart.   
  
Lizzie was ultimately confused. She wished she could read his thoughts, as this would have made it a lot easier to decide a few things, like her future with him. "I want to forgive him," she found herself saying out loud.  
  
Whoa. Where did that come from? She looked around, making sure no one was around to hear her. It was the truth, though. Whether she liked it or not, she loved him too much to let everything end so easily. He may have made a huge mistake with his words, but that was in the heat of the moment. Surely, assuming he had been telling the truth about his feelings when she had no memory of his thoughts, he had at least thought of ways to tell her about this. Knowing Gordo, he didn't want to lie, right?   
  
She was so unsure of everything and she hated this feeling. It was like she was being thrown in all directions at once between wanting to kill Gordo, wanting to forgive him, wanting to talk about everything with him, being mad at herself for possibly blowing everything out of proportion, and being mad at getting mad at Gordo when the same thoughts crossed her mind. She needed to give Gordo some credit, here. Her heart was still devoted to him and he was the person that always made her smile. His opinion counted to her and maybe that was the reason that when he said all those things, her response was anger. How could he have said such things when he was supposed to be so optimistic?  
  
She was glad she agreed to stay. She threatened to leave out of anger, anyway. She was also glad she agreed to take this trip with Gordo because as painful as it was to deal with all of this, she was glad at the end of the day (well, except this one) that Gordo was willing to be with her. Most of all, this trip was more like a journey. She learned so much about herself and thought so much about this that she was really beginning to get excited about everything. The whole idea of another life really was a miracle and she'd never experienced the real feeling of this miracle until she really thought about it all.   
  
So there it was, all so clear. She would talk with Gordo and they would sort things out and they would live happily ever after thereafter. Lizzie grinned, and curled up in her bed. Everything would be okay, after all.  
  
But now that the parents were coming, Lizzie decided to have a little fun of her own first. While she was willing to forgive him, she wasn't willing to tell him that she had forgiven him. He wasn't going to be let go without a fight.  
  
~~~  
  
~Gordo~  
  
At some point after Gordo lost the sense of time, Gordo reached Rome and before he was ready to face the music, he pulled into the hotel in which he and Lizzie were staying. He sighed. What was he going to say? In all honesty, he didn't think he could say anything that would impress Lizzie without proper sleep. He wanted to talk to her with energy.  
  
Finally, after a few minutes he opened the car door and got his things from the back and slammed the door, locking it back. As tempting as it was to fall asleep in the car, he needed to know that Lizzie was okay.  
  
When he reached the door to their room, he looked at it. Here goes nothing, he thought as he opened the door. He looked and saw Lizzie sound asleep on the bed. Gordo honestly expected her to be up and waiting for him and he was waiting for her to jump up and scream, but she didn't do that either. She just slept. And she actually looked peaceful.  
  
Gordo thought for a moment. The right thing to do would be to announce his presence. But was that asking for something? He sighed loudly and sat on the chair by the window. He grabbed his pillow a pillow from the floor and put it behind his bed. Before he could say, "Buonanotte," he fell asleep.  
  
~~~  
  
~Lizzie~  
  
The next morning, Lizzie woke up early and saw that Gordo was sleeping on the chair. She thought about waking him up, but decided against it, knowing that he could probably use the sleep.   
  
Lizzie knew that their parents were flying in at around ten and it was eight then. Lizzie figured Gordo was in charge of picking them up, but knowing that he could use the extra sleep and not wanting to deal with awkwardness just yet, she decided that she was going to be the designated driver. She took a quick shower and dressed, leaving a quick " I went to pick up parents. I'll see you when we get back. Lizzie" note, grabbed the keys and was off.  
  
She couldn't believe she was doing this. In fact, as she started the engine, she thought about going and waking up Gordo, but then decided it wasn't worth the hassle. She asked for directions from the lobby and headed for the airport and was there by nine-thirty. Good, she thought, she woke up feeling really good about everything for the first time. She didn't want to be angry anymore and she didn't want to get upset. She just wanted to look toward the future and deal with the present. She took a deep breath and walked to the gate to wait for her parents.  
  
She bought a magazine and checked the flight. It was delayed about a half an hour. Great, she thought, she had an hour to spare. She thought about calling someone to pass time, as that was what she usually did when she was waiting for something, but wasn't entirely sure how to call anyone and didn't know whom to call. So she sat down with the magazine and waited.   
  
But her parents weren't the only thing she was waiting for. She was really waiting for the rest of her life.  
  
~~~  
  
I'm going to try to update Simplicity next. Thanks for reading! I will write the next chapter as soon as possible. 


	26. Ventisei

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE! Okay, so, like, yeah....a whole summer has gone by and I really don't have anything to show for myself, do I? I honestly don't know why it is taking me so long to come up with a chapter. Anyway, I don't really have any excuses and I sincerely hope that my next update takes less than four months. Anyway, I hope you had a phenomenal summer.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Gordo

When Gordo woke up, he immediately noticed that Lizzie was not there and jumped up. He started worrying about what could have happened to her until he noticed the note. "Great," he thought, "I haven't talked to her since she got mad at him on the phone and I have no idea what she will do with our parents...or what she will tell them."

Gordo quickly took a shower and got dressed for the day. He was feeling really anxious about the day, mainly because he had no idea what Lizzie was thinking and worse—he had no idea what to say to Lizzie. This was such a huge mess and Gordo had no one he could talk to...except Miranda, but he didn't want to call her because he was afraid Lizzie would call. "This baby is not even born," he thought, "and it already has a father who screwed up."

Lizzie

An hour later, Lizzie heard that the flight had arrived and she got up, putting the magazine in her bag, she stood up and waited for her parents and the Gordon family to arrive. She put on her best smile and waited with the others who were waiting as the people got through customs.

Right when she was beginning to wonder if they were even on this plane, she finally saw her mother and father, followed by Mr. and Mrs. Gordon. It looked like her parents were having a slight argument over the bags when Jo spotted Lizzie out of the corner of her eye, "Honey!" Jo said, walking over to her daughter with her arms out, "we were so worried! Has Gordo been taking good care of you?" Jo gave Lizzie a kiss on the forehead as they hugged.

Lizzie smiled and nodded politely, "Yes, mom, he has." The other three older adults were headed towards them, waving and handling their luggage, "How are you? How was your flight?"

"It was okay, sweetie, but the important thing is that you are okay. You are okay, right?" Jo cupped her face.

"I'm fine, mom. I really am."

Jo let go of her face and Lizzie took turns hugging her dad, and Mr. and Mrs. Gordon. Then, Sam indicated that he wanted to get out of the airport as soon as possible. They had all of their luggage, and so they went outside. "Do we need to call a taxi?" Howard asked.

"No, we rented a car in Sicily. I'll drive it back to the hotel."

"Are you sure that it is okay for you to drive?" Jo asked, worriedly.

Lizzie rolled her eyes, "Mom, I'm fine. That was days ago and I definitely remember how to drive."

Lizzie led the way as they found their car. Lizzie opened the trunk and everyone put their suitcases in there. It was hard to fit them all, but it was done. Sam sat up front with Lizzie as Jo, Roberta, and Howard occupied the back seat. As Lizzie drove them to the hotel, he sort of talked to her dad while the people in the back seat seemed pretty fascinated with what was outside of the car.

"This is such a beautiful city. I am sorry Howard and I had to come here under these circumstances, but I have always wanted to go to Rome," Roberta said.

"I know," Jo said, "When Sam and I came here to see Lizzie, we barely had any opportunity to see the city, so I've always wanted to come back here. Sam and I were talking about coming here for our thirtieth anniversary. Are you doing okay up there, sweetie? Are you sure you don't want to call Gordo and have him meet us somewhere? We aren't really tired. We can look around the city. I have my camera right here."

"I'm fine," Lizzie said, "We should probably get back to the hotel and check in, anyway. That way you can put your luggage up and then decide what we want to do."

"Okay," Jo said, "hey, Sam, honey, is my wallet in your bag or my bag?"

"It's in your bag."

Lizzie sighed. "What a nightmare," she thought, "I hope I never act like this when I'm older and Gordo and I have been married for that long...assuming we get married."

"So, Lizzie," Roberta said, "Tell me, is this not the most romantic place you have ever been?"

"Roberta!" Howard said, lightly hitting his wife on the arm, "She's here because she had amnesia. She probably didn't even remember who Gordo was until yesterday or the day before that."

"Well, excuse me. I just thought that maybe while she was here she's noticed the atmosphere was a little different. Is it, Lizzie?"

Lizzie shrugged, "I don't know," she said, "I haven't really paid that much attention."

Ten minutes later, and not a minute too soon, they had arrived. She didn't remember her parents being so cranky, but she figured that it might have had something to do with the traveling. At that point she realized that she had to stick with Gordo because otherwise, she would go insane.

Unfortunately, the hotel clerk would not let them check in at that time. Lizzie offered to allow them to use their room to put their bags in and freshen up for the time being. The hotel clerk said that there was one room that was ready, which meant that the couples could split up and have their own rooms.

"Don't you want to call Gordo before we head up? He might still be sleeping or something," Jo said.

"Is that why he didn't come with you? I thought it was because there wasn't enough room in the car," Roberta said, and laughter followed.

"Give him a call. We don't walk in on him while he's taking a shower or something," Jo said, then she turned to the rest of them, "Howard, Roberta, why don't you take the room that's ready. We'll meet each other in the lobby in about a half an hour."

They agreed, the clerk gave them a key, and Jo and Sam waited, as Lizzie phoned her room. "Please pick up and be there," Lizzie thought to herself.

"Lizzie?" Gordo asked, on the other line, "Lizzie? Is that you?"

Lizzie looked over at her parents who were watching her and smiling as they waited, "Hey, Gordo, of course it is me! Listen, I picked up our parents and unfortunately only one room is ready right now. Anyway, so they want to go freshen up for the day after their long flight and I told my parents that it would be okay if they used our room. Are you decent?" Lizzie said this in sort of a neutral tone, giving Gordo no indication of what she was thinking.

"Yeah. Send them right up."

"Great. I'll see you in a minute."

They hung up and Lizzie led the way up the stairs and into their room. Gordo was sitting on the bed and stood up when her heard Lizzie open the door. He saw Lizzie first, followed by Mr. and Mrs. McGuire, who greeted him and thanked him for taking such good care of Lizzie.

"Well," Lizzie said, walking over to stand by Gordo, "we are going to give you two some privacy and go hang out in the lobby. We'll see you in thirty minutes."

Lizzie and Gordo left and headed to the hotel lobby and sat down on a couch, "So you decided to pick them up, huh?" Gordo asked, "I would have been glad to do it, you know. Or I would have been glad to have gone with you."

Lizzie shrugged, "There wasn't enough room in the car for all of us."

"Oh."

"So..." Gordo said, trying to think of something to talk about, "How was the airport?"

"It was fine. The flight was delayed for about thirty minutes."

"Did you mention anything about...us?"

Lizzie shook her head, "No, I didn't really think that was necessary. Do you?"

"No," Gordo said, immediately, "I agree with you. This has nothing to do with them."

"Yeah," Lizzie said, "This has to do with us. We're going to have to work together through these next few days and we can't let them think that we are not getting along."

Gordo nodded his head, "I agree."

"I don't want my parents to know everything about what has happened yet. We'll figure that out later."

Lizzie and Gordo sat out there for a few more minutes until Howard said, "Oh, to be young and to be in love!"

Gordo, followed by Lizzie, stood up and Gordo gave his dad a quick hug, "Hey, dad," he said, smiling, feeling a little bit nervous for some reason, "How was your flight?"

"Well," he said, as he sat down across from them in a chair and Lizzie and Gordo sat back down, "It was okay. It was a little cramped, but I slept most of the way, so it was fine. You're mother should be down in a few minutes. If its alright with you, we were thinking about eating lunch and maybe walking around the city. Would you guys like to join us?"

"Sure, Mr. Gordon," Lizzie said.

"Dad, how long do you think you and mom are going to be here, anyway?"

Howard shrugged, "I don't know. When are you two planning on leaving?"

"Well, I have to go by the hospital quickly tomorrow, but we aren't really sure, seeing as our plans changed a little bit," Lizzie said.

"Yeah, Lizzie and I have to talk about that and get the car back to Sicily."

"Well, we're here for you, Lizzie. We want to make sure you'll be okay. I know David cares a lot about you and Roberta and I are here to help you."

"Thank you, Mr. Gordon," Lizzie smiled.

"Oh, please, Lizzie," Howard said, "I think we've known each other long enough to where you can call me Howard."

"Okay," Lizzie said.

Sam was the next person down, followed by Roberta and Jo. They all agreed to what they were doing and they also agreed that they would walk.

It was really hot outside and in all honesty, the tour of Rome that the parents wanted to do did not appeal Lizzie at all. It was like she felt like being all by herself or with Gordo, but she didn't want to overcrowd herself with too many people to deal with. She sort of hinted this to Gordo while they were eating lunch and the parents were busy talking about whether to see the Coliseum today and save Vatican City for the next day or vice versa. "Gordo," she said, "I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind letting them go off and having us doing something else."

"Are you feeling okay, Lizzie?" he asked, mainly because he didn't think she would choose to be alone with him if their were other options."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Lizzie assured him, "I just think we should tell them that I just don't feel like walking around and getting dehydrated and that we'll catch a movie or hang around the hotel."

Gordo nodded his head and after lunch, they told their parents the new plans. Lizzie didn't really want to be alone with Gordo, but she figured it was better if a0 they got it over with and b0 it seemed like a better alternative than what she could be doing with her parents.

The parents seemed okay with it of course, offering that they all go back and help Lizzie, but Lizzie said she's be okay after some rest. Lizzie was pretty sure that it was all going to work out when suddenly, something surprising happened.

"Gordo," Sam said, "If you don't mind, I'd like to spend this afternoon with Lizzie myself. In fact, why don't you go with Jo and your parents and I'll see to it that Lizzie gets back to normal."

Everyone looked at Sam, surprised, "What? I've been to Rome before. Also, I wouldn't mind the chance to sleep myself. Is that okay with you, Gordo?"

Lizzie and Gordo glanced at each other and all Lizzie did was shrug. It didn't seem like a bad idea, although she did feel like it was a little weird of her dad to do this. "Okay, dad," she finally said, "That's fine with me." Sam smiled and the groups headed in their separate directions.

Once they were a safe distance apart, Sam said, "Lizzie, I know you are probably wondering why I offered to go with you."

"I am curious."

"Well, I decided to take advantage of this time with you and see if you are alright and to assure you that if you need anyone to talk to...about anything at all...I'm here for you."

"Thanks."

"And I mean it. Even if it's something about Gordo, I'll talk."

"Okay," Lizzie said, feeling a little weird.

"And Lizzie, if this will make it a little easier to talk to me, I already know."

Lizzie blushed. What could her dad possibly know? "What do you know?"

"Lizzie?" he said, getting a little nervous sound in his voice, "I haven't told anyone, including your mother this, but I know you are pregnant."

ooooo !!! ooooo

Oh! The sorrow! The pain! I can't believe this story is even remotely near to coming to an end! There are only a few chapters left of this story...my first story. Review if you have time. Otherwise, until next time...


	27. Ventisette

I DO NOT OWN LIZZIE MCGUIRE!!! I know, I know, it's been almost as bad as the last time with the wait. At least I'm updating. Truth is, as much as I love this story, I've been working on this other story for over a year now and while I want to post it, I really want to try and finish a few stories up before I do so and since I've been working on this story for almost two years now, I think its about time that I wrap it up. I'm not going to rush through anything, though. Anyway, enjoy and look for an update on one or two of my other stories soon.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Lizzie blushed at what her father just said, "What?" she said, trying to decide if she should tell him the truth or act like he was crazy, "I mean, dad, what are you talking about."

Sam smirked. "Lizzie, you don't have to try and cover this up. This isn't just some wild guess. In fact, you could be due tomorrow and if I wasn't positive and you hadn't said anything about it, I'd believe you."

"Then how do you know?"

"The day Gordo called," Sam said, opening the hotel door and letting in his daughter, "I went by your apartment to look for some insurance information and while I was there, I called your doctor to see if what happened to you was explainable and after the nurse checked the files, she kept referring to 'your condition' and how it was perfectly normal for someone who was pregnant to be tired and exhausted. I hung up thinking they were misinformed, but then I found the doctor's bill from before you left on the side of your bed and well, honey, I wasn't born yesterday."

Lizzie looked down as they waited for the elevator, "So, I guess you're a little disappointed that I'm pregnant before I'm even married, huh?"

"Honey," Sam said, in an assured voice, "There are very few things you could do that would disappoint me, and this is not one of them. You are an adult, Lizzie, and sure, if this happened five or six years ago, I'd have more to say about it, but you didn't live with Gordo five or six years ago. If anything, I'm happy for you. The only thing that sickens me when I think about it is that I'm going to be a grandfather."

Lizzie smiled and looked at her father, "So you're not mad?"

Sam shook his head, "Nope. You have told Gordo, haven't you?"

"Oh yeah," Lizzie said, remembering his reaction, "I told him, all right."

"And he's okay with it, right?"

Lizzie nodded her head, "I think he's okay with it. I don't think he expected it, but I think he might be getting used to the idea."

"Have you two talked about getting married?"

Lizzie shrugged, as they opened the door to her room, "Not really. This whole week has been sort of hectic."

Sam nodded, "Well, I always knew you and Gordo would end up together and I have a feeling that this next year will be a pretty big year for you."

Lizzie smiled. She was glad someone knew, and she was actually glad that it wasn't her mother. She loved her mother a lot, but her mom had a tendency to be sort of controlling at times.

"I'm going to get some rest, dad," Lizzie said, lying on her bed.

"Can I do anything for you?"

"Nope. Thanks for taking me here, though. Why don't you take a nap? I'm sure you could use some sleep from that flight."

"Good idea," Sam said, "I'll check on you later, Lizzie."

Sam left to his room, which was ready. Lizzie didn't fall asleep. She just lay there in bed, and starred out the window. She felt a little better about everything knowing that her dad was okay with her pregnancy, but there was a gray line between her and Gordo at the moment. Also, she still had to tell everyone else and she was sure a frank discussion about their future would take place with their parents. At least her father was on her side. At least, she thought he was on her side.

Maybe Sam was right about something, though. Maybe this year would prove to be extraordinary for her and Gordo.

She lay there thinking about everything, especially things between her and Gordo. She wondered how Gordo was handling sightseeing with her mom and his parents. The fact that he was willing to do that meant a lot to Lizzie. She still had no idea what she wanted to say to him or how this would work out if Gordo really wasn't ready for all of this right now.

In the meantime, Gordo followed his parents and Jo as they walked around the city and even went into some of the museums and shops. Gordo was about to lose his patience when they went into a leather factory and tried on just about every jacket and looked at everything. Gordo's parents offered to buy him a jacket, as an early birthday present, but Gordo didn't seem interested. It was summer and it was really hot. His girlfriend was pregnant and his life was about to change dramatically. The last thing he wanted to do was buy a leather jacket.

His parents bought themselves leather jackets and Jo bought some shoes. All Gordo could think about was Lizzie and how these people were about to become grandparents and they had no idea what was coming.

Four hours later, they finally decided they would call it a day. After they bought some gelato, they headed back to the hotel in a taxi. Gordo sat in the back with his mom and hopefully future mother in law while his dad sat in the front with the driver. Gordo was glad they were finally going back to the hotel, and hoped they would just do their own thing for the rest of the night, as Gordo was anxious to talk to Lizzie.

When they got to the hotel, Gordo was glad to hear that the other room was ready and even happier to hear that Sam got all their luggage out of their room so the room was all theirs. When he entered their room, Lizzie was sitting on the bed, talking on the phone.

"I feel fine, Miranda. You really don't need to come here. Actually, we have enough going on right now with our parents coming in today," Lizzie said. She turned around, smiled and waved at Gordo, and turned back facing the window. After Miranda said something, Lizzie said, "Well, we haven't gotten that far yet, so I don't know." After Miranda responded with something, Lizzie said, "Yeah, well, Miranda, I'm going to have to call you back. I'm glad you're having fun with Ethan, though. Enjoy your dinner tonight!"

After they said their goodbyes, Lizzie hung up, stood up and greeted Gordo, "Hey," she said, "So, how was it?"

Gordo rolled his eyes and fell onto the bed, "It was all right. What have you been doing?"

Sitting back down on the bed, Lizzie said, "Well, my dad went to go take nap, so I rested, watched some TV, and then Miranda called and we talked. Miranda is thinking that they are going to go home in about a week which means that we should probably head back in a few days and return the car and everything."

Gordo nodded, "Okay. Tonight we'll ask our parents how long they want to stay here and then go from there."

Lizzie bit her lip, "Are we going out to dinner with them or something?"

"I don't know, but we'll probably see them again tonight."

Lizzie sighed, "I don't know why they decided to come here in the first place," Lizzie said, "I mean, I know my parents care about my health, but I'm fine now and I don't want to hang out with them right now."

Gordo nodded, looking at Lizzie, "I know, today, we went to a leather factory and my parents were trying on all these jackets and all it did was remind me why I didn't go with them on their vacations as I got older. This is a completely different type of trip for them. Here we are trying to figure things out about our relationship and I didn't need this right now."

Gordo didn't mean to say the last sentence, and when he realized what he said, his voice sort of drifted and he waited to see what Lizzie's reaction was to that. Lizzie just looked away and contemplated.

Finally, not wanting to talk about them just yet, Lizzie said, "My dad knows I'm pregnant."

Gordo's eyes widened, "Really? You told him?"

Lizzie shook her head, "No, he just told me he knew and said when he called the doctor to see if he had any explanation, the nurse explained to him that pregnant women can be a little light headed and this was fairly natural."

"Wow," was all Gordo could say, "was he okay about it?"

"Yeah, he was perfectly fine. He seemed happy for me, Gordo…he seemed happy for us."

"That's good," Gordo said, "I mean, it's good that he's not mad."

Lizzie nodded and the room became sort of quiet. Lizzie finally cleared her throat and reached out to touch Gordo's hand. Gordo looked up at Lizzie, waiting for her to say something as his heartbeat became faster, "Gordo, no matter what happens between us, I'll always love you. You know that, right?"

Gordo swallowed, "I love you, too, Lizzie. I said some stupid things the other night and I did some stupid things these past few days, but its only made me realize how much I love you and, well, I've decided that I can handle this new step and responsibility, as long as I do it with you."

A tear streamed down Lizzie's face and Gordo sat up and looked right into her eyes, "I know you love me, Gordo. I was mad about what you said, but I was even more upset when you lied to me about everything."

"Lizzie," Gordo said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, "I didn't tell you about the argument because I was ashamed. I acted like an idiot that night when I should have done nothing but support you. I never lied to you when you asked me how I felt about it when you couldn't remember, though. I told you I could handle a child with you and I wasn't lying. I'll love our children more than I love anything in this world…besides you. I didn't tell you about the tension because I didn't want to lose you like I thought I did. Our child is a blessing. I don't want to lose any of that."

Crying, Lizzie nodded her head, "I know. The reason I became angry was because I'm scared, too. Everyday, I've been asking myself if I'm sure that I'm ready for all of this and I wasn't sure. I mean, here we are, two people who live with each other, love each other, but we aren't married, which means that none of this was planned. I was angry with you because you said the things I were fighting with every time I thought about it, and I didn't want to make this baby come into this world unloved and unwanted. I thought if you could be positive, I could be positive and we could do this together. I don't want to lose us, either, Gordo."

"But I thought about it, Lizzie, and this baby is a positive thing. Sure, this was unplanned and unexpected right now, but that doesn't mean its unwanted or unloved. I love you, Lizzie, and not to sound cheesy or anything, but love can conquer all, and I do think this will work out."

Lizzie nodded, "So do I."

Gordo smiled at Lizzie's words. Her saying that meant they could work this out, "Marry me, then, Lizzie."

Lizzie looked at Gordo, confused, "what??"

"Marry me." Gordo stood up and opened his suitcase and presented Lizzie with a box. Lizzie took the box, still confused, and opened it, "Elizabeth McGuire, I love you. I should have proposed to you a long time ago, but now that I've waited this long, I don't know how much longer I can stand it. Will you marry me?"

Lizzie shook her head, which scared Gordo, "Why? I mean, are you sure?"

Gordo got on his knees and crawled a little closer to Lizzie, "Liz, I've never been so sure about anything in my life."

After contemplating this for another few seconds, Lizzie finally smiled, "Okay, I'll marry you."

Gordo's face lightened up and he took the ring from the box and placed the ring on her finger. It was a prefect fit. The couple smiled at each other and Gordo reached in to give Lizzie a kiss.

Now, both of them knew what everyone knew all along…they were going to live together happily ever after.

Oooooo ! oooooO

The story isn't over quite yet, but it only has one more chapter…maybe two. I'll update as soon as possible. Much love.

piacere


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